The Warden of Ash and Fire
by samurai89
Summary: -Game of Thrones/For Honor Crossover- A Warden awakens, finding herself in Kings Landing as the city is sacked by red and gold lions.
1. Chapter 1-Awakening

She opened her eyes to ash and fire.

A gout of flame shot towards her and she slid back on instinct alone, the heat felt through her steel helmet as she brought her sword up to her shoulder in a guard position, expecting a follow-up attack. When none came, she scanned her surroundings and found only burning buildings and the sound of death.

 _Where am I?_

Eagle eyes scanned her surroundings in more detail but she found no answers to her unvoiced question. She only saw more of a city that was clearly being attacked. Unarmed people fled down roads chased by fire, smoke and merciless steel wielded by red and gold-clad soldiers who did not hesitate to cut their quarry down.

A mother ran past her, holding a babe in her arms, her clothing-and flesh- burned and burning as she screamed to high heaven. A pair of soldiers pursued with naked blades and malice in their eyes but stopped once they caught sight of her.

Instinct took hold. _Threat. Killl._

She parried a hasty thrust then countered with a cut that forced one soldier back. She followed up, greatsword swinging in an arc that claved through armour, flesh, bone and brain. Pulling away from the corpse she went on the offensive with a haste that caught her remaining enemy off-guard as he failed to parry resulting in the loss of fingers and a dropped sword. He screamed in pain for barely a moment before the tip of the blade ran straight through his mouth and out the other side.

As the body dropped the Warden took note of her prey.

 _Red and gold lion? Never seen that helmet design before. A Legion faction?_

The building to her side collapsed, supports burned to cinders. She moved before the embers, or the flame, touched her.

 _Find safety. Assess the situation._

A stone keep rose in the distance. It was a deep crimson colour dotted with many towers and dominated the city. It did not appear to be on fire though the flames gave it an ominous glow.

 _Fortified position located._

She ran for it.

* * *

Elia Martell prayed. To the New Gods, to the Old, to anything that might help her.

She was trapped with her children within the Royal Chambers of the Red Keep. The Lannisters, the duplicitous, traitorous, honourless Lannisters had stormed Kings Landing breaking their promises to aid the embattled Aerys II Targaryen when the city gates were opened for them. The city, built by Aegon the Conqueror, supposedly on the site on which he landed his invasion force that conquered the whole of Westeros, was burning.

Rhaenys, her sweet, precious daughter huddled close, cradling her little pet cat Balerion with tears streaming down her face. Her other child, her only son Aegon, a babe barely able to even form speech, she held close to her bosom as he cried and wailed.

"Father, Smith, Warrior, Mother, Maiden, Crone. Send aid to your faithful so that they may prosper.

Father, send Justice.

Smith, send Strength.

Warriors, send Courage.

Mother, send Mercy.

Maiden, send Virtue.

Crone, send Wisdom."

The chant ran from her lips with the conviction of the desperate and fearful. Elia had never been a religious sort but now, in this moment of dire need, she hoped the Gods were listening.

Something slammed against the door and she jumped. Rhaenys let out a cry and Aegon another wail.

"Under the bed sweetling" She told her daughter, trying to keep the shaking from her voice. Rhaenys shook her head and held on tighter but Elia forced the little girl's hands' away from her dress "Please little one, get under the bed and close your mouth. Stifle your tears" she wiped a tear trailing down her daughter's cheek "Dragons do not cry"

Rhaenys, bless her sweet heart, refused so Elia all but shoved her daughter under their father's bed with half thought promises and empty words of comfort.

Just then the door exploded in a splinter of wood and an ugly, brutish giant walked through. He had to have been the tallest, largest man Elia had ever laid eyes upon. Behind him followed an equally brutish, but shorter, man. Both were garbed in Lannister red and gold place but without their helmets. In their eyes Elai saw naught but malice and evil intent.

"Oh the Sandy Princess's a true beauty ain't she Gregor" the shorter of the two leered at her "Now, where's the little cunt eh?" He pulled out his sword and pointed at the Dornishwoman "Where's the little bitch you call a daughter?"

Elia refused to answer, head held high, her silence as much defiance as fear.

Amory Lorch raised a brow, sneering "Being quiet aint gunna do you much good Princess. Fine, we'll see how well that mouth of yours works after we're through with it"

Gregor Clegane, the Mountain that Rides, moved to grab her but Elia backed away, throwing a flower pot at the man which crashed against his head but did little to deter him. With an angry roar he charged and smacked her across the face with a meaty hand.

Elia screamed in pain, curling over her babe as she slammed into a cabinet, ears ringing.

Rhaenys screamed as she saw her mother's body crumple to the floor.

Lorch quickly dived under the bed and seized the struggling girl after he heard the scream, bringing her out and lifting her by her ankle. Balerion hissed and roared, scrambling out of its owner's hands as he dived at Lorch's' face with claws outstretched. The Lannister man yelled as the cat pounced on him, claws raking his face but he quickly grabbed it by its body and threw it into a wall.

Elia saw the spectacle and managed only to whisper a few words.

"Stranger, send Death"

Amory Lorch's head flew off his neck with a spray of crimson.

* * *

The Warden kicked Lorch's body away as she brought her sword to strike at the mountain of a man but a strong fist parried the thrust to the neck she had been aiming for, though not without injury.

She slid back, anticipating the swing from the other fist, then lunged, this time aiming for a shoulder. The blade struck true, slipping between pauldron and gorget but the brute barely seemed to register it as he sent a fist that struck her head and knocked her back. She rolled with it as much as she could but it still stunned her, enough for the Mountain to shoulder barge her straight into a wall which forced the breath out of her lungs. Sliding down Clegane followed up with a knee to her face throwing her head back.

Reeling from the concussive blows she withdrew her arming dagger with her left hand and buried it into the Mountain's thigh, piercing through chainmail though missing the crotch but cutting nerves and tendons still. The beast of a man screamed as he fell back, giving her space to get back up and swing her greatsword to crumple the man's right kneecap.

Her enemy would not be so easy to take down however as he drew the dagger out of his thigh and threw it at her. The distraction gave enough time for him to draw his massive sword that had been strapped to his back previously.

 _Longer reach than me, greater strength, great endurance. Shugoki._

She changed stance from aggressive to one suited to counterattack, and waited.

 _Large bedroom with multiple obstacles. Delay, unbalance, strike._

The Mountain bellowed. The Mountain swung.

She parried.

Sparks flew where their blades connected and she directed the force away leaving Gregor exposed to a thrust to his chest which hit, then another to his injured knee which only poked in before the man shuffled out of reach.

She pressed, scoring more injuries to his arms and hands but drew back when the Mountain steadied his feet.

They stared each other down, his wide, wild eyes to her own, barely visible through thin visor slits.

The Mountain moved.

She shifted to parry.

He threw a bed at her, frame and all. It crashed against her sending her back against a wall.

Gregor surged forward, uninjured knee carrying his bulk a great distance to pierce through bedding and mattress and wooden frame.

Though not through flesh, nor steel.

The blade only scraped the side of her cheek, ringing where steel helmet met steel edge.

Struggling, she rolled to the side and under the bed, sword poised to strike.

It pierced into upper arm, elbow and forearm rendering the Mountain's left arm useless.

The Mountain still swung at her.

With the bed attached to his sword.

Wood crashed against steel plate.

Steel plate won.

She moved with the blow to lessen the force of its impact, though she felt something snap in her abdomen regardless. She ignored it, shifting to an aggressive stance that would have left many holes in her defence.

If her opponent wasn't fighting with a bed attached to his sword.

Her flurry of blows rained like steel death on exposed weak-points on the Mountains armour. Elbows, fingers, hands, knees.

Face.

Gregor reeled back with a great shout, blood gushing in an arc from the cut across his face that split an eye.

The Warden swung a blow from her right side intent to cut off a head.

It cut off his right hand.

The stump moved away from Gregor's face and the screaming did not stop.

The Warden paused, collected herself, and swung overhead.

The Mountain blocked it with his 'useless' arm.

 _Shugoki indeed._

The kick to her stomach sent her tumbling back and she tripped over a piece of furniture.

He was on her in an instant, all screaming, savage fury, pounding with a bleeding stump and a flailing left arm and a head made of stone.

They struggled on the floor of the bedroom, his great weight pinning her down.

Elia ran the arming dagger into the Mountain's head with both hands and the fury of a mother defending her children.

It barely pierced through his thick skull.

Wide eyed with horror and disbelief Elia backed away slowly as the Mountain turned his furious gaze on her.

Another dagger ran through his remaining eye.

The Mountain twitched, managing to crane his head to the Warden like a broken doll, then collapsed.

* * *

 _Reminder: Thank Mercy for those daggers._

The Warden looked down on the broken, bleeding and mangled form of one Gregor Clegane, the Mountain that Rides.

Elia buried Lorch's sword into the Mountain's neck with a squelch and crunch.

Now it was a broken, bleeding, mangled and _mutilated_ form of one Gregor Clegane, the Mountain that Rides.

The Warden turned her visored gaze towards the other woman.

"Just in case. I would burn his body too. With wildfire if I could"

The Warden looked back at the corpse, shrugged, and decapitated it.

The woman had a point, the man had been monstrous. That her body ached from tip to toe to broken rib and dislocated jaw was proof enough.

Breathing through her mouth also reminded her of three missing teeth.

Her left brow was also cut and bleeding, sealing one eye shut, just to add to it all.

"We must escape, there will certainly be more of them" Elia said as she gathered her traumatised children, quickly fashioning a sling for Aegon and shepherding Rhaenys away from the two bloody corpses into the corridor outside.

"Come" she called out to the Warden, looking over her shoulder as she stood at the doorway. When the armoured woman didnt move she urged again "I owe you more than I can ever repay but I cannot have a chance to repay if we do not leave"

The Warden looked at her, to the bodies, then back to her, and nodded.

On the way out Elia grabbed a torch and set fire to the room.

* * *

They ran through several Lannister patrols, quite literally, before arriving at the harbour.

"To escape on horse would be folly" Elia had explained while she searched for a serviceable boat "The Lannisters would have all the gates watched and while you have proven yourself more than capable I do not wish that gamble"

The Warden thought the explanation was more for the mother's own sake that hers, to get her thoughts grounded.

"Ah, there" The Dornishwoman pointed to a small rowing boat "Get aboard"

She put little Rhaenys on first, then herself and Aegon before turning around and helping the Warden.

She sat on the bench, looking at the Warden expectedly.

The Warden stared back.

There was silence between them for a moment.

"You dont know how to row do you?"

The Warden shook her head.

Elia cursed.

* * *

They managed to figure out the rougher points of rowing and set to sea, all the while King's Landing burned and died around them. The night sky turned red and gold as the city was subjected to uncountable atrocities by the Army of Lannister.

Elia gazed at the place that had been her home, as well as her prison in the last few months. The fire did not spread to the Red Keep, at least, not from the outside.

 _How did it all come to this?_

Harrenhall. Her Princes' - _Her Husbands'_ \- folly. His unwarranted infidelity.

 _Rhaegar fell for a hot blooded Northern wolf and for his satisfaction a kingdom burned._

Valiant Rhaegar. Noble Rhaegar. Honorable Rhaegar.

Dead Rhaegar.

Her heart clenched in her chest and, unbidden, tears flowed and she clutched little Aegon tighter. The babe had long since exhausted himself into slumber and Rhaenys had followed suit, holding the injured but alive Balerion the Black Cat.

Her children. The last of her beloved husband's legacy. The last children she could ever hope to have. Her beautiful, innocent children.

 _They do not deserve this._

The waves splattered against their boat, rocking them side to side but it was kept steady, not least because of her mysterious saviour.

Looking away from the city Elia turned her eyes towards Stranger in front of her. For the first time since their meeting Elia had a chance to properly look at the Stranger who toppled the Mountain.

Not that there was much to see behind the armour. Though the heraldry was strange enough. Orange on black with the symbol of half a skull and half a helmet with a sword driven between the two, was not one she recognised as belonging to any Houses in Westeros. It seemed strangely fitting. Considering how he had appeared as if from nowhere when she had whispered that prayer to the Stranger, dealing death with a skill that she found comparable to Rhaegar.

Dead Rhaegar.

She shook her head, banishing the thought, and the image.

Still, despite her misgivings about trusting the Stranger she could not deny his usefulness. She would not be alive if it were not for this mystery Knight.

 _A hedge-Knight? Hiding in the city looking to make a name for himself? But no, he would have turned me over to the Lannisters if it were so._

 _A Knight of the Reach perhaps?_

It was then, as she was looking, that Elia saw the blood flowing from beneath the great steel helmet, and how he leaned to one side and heard the way he was panting for breath.

"You are injured?"

He nodded "Simple wounds that will heal in time"

The voice was not quite as deep as she had assumed but Elia brushed it aside as unimportant.

"This is no time for false bravado Ser Knight, remove your helmet so I may bind your wounds"

Shrugging, he stopped rowing to remove his helmet.

At that moment a strong wave crashed upon them, rocking the boat violently. Salty sea water splashed over them covering them all. Balerion let out a startled cry and would have jumped off the boat if not for Elia's hold on Rhaenys. As it was the cat's struggles and the splash of water only startled the little girl awake.

"Ahh!" Sea water splashed across Elia's eyes, stinging and forcing them shut.

"We've lost an oar" She heard her companion call out.

 _Oh no_. Her mind worked, trying to find solutions and only coming up with one answer. "We have to get to shore, if we capsize we are doomed!"

 _Curse the sea! Curse the Lannisters! Oh why did I not think that this could happen?_

Thankfully they, or rather the Knight, had rowed them out far past King's Landing harbour so that they could run aground far enough away from the still burning city. She held her children close to her and felt Rhaenys shivering in the cold night air.

 _Soaked and with no warm clothing. Oh my poor little darling, be strong, please, be strong._

With a grunt of effort the Knight finally managed to ground the vessel using their remaining oar as a barge pole to guide the boat to the sandy shore.

* * *

They had landed south of Kings Landing. They could still see the city in the distance though the only thing discernable was the Red Keep from this far away.

The Warden turned away from the city to her companions. The dusky-skinned woman did her best to wrap the little girl, _Her daughter?_ , in as many layers as possible, scavenging her own gown in the process. The babe was still swaddled and miraculously still asleep. The little girl, Rhaenys, held on to the black cat who looked at outright mess with tufts of fur sticking out, not that the rest of them were any better. The woman was wearing nothing but silken rags, black hair a wild matted mess while Rhaenys was covered in as much material as could be stripped and tied to her.

"Where to now?" She asked the mother.

The woman finished tying a piece of fabric to Rhaenys' leg and turned towards the Warden. "What?"

"Where to now?" She repeated.

The woman looked taken aback, dark eyes looking at her in confusion "Uh-I-I had thought you had a plan?"

The Warden shrugged "None"

Elia groaned, whispering something that the Warden didnt catch. "Very well, fine" She took a deep breath, steadying her shaking shoulders "We-uhm. The Roseroad, yes. Take the Roseroad to...Highgarden?" she shook her head, fingers massaging her temple "No, no, the Tyrell's are besieging Storm's End"

She took another deep breath "Storm's End then, it is where the Tyrell army is. If we can get to them and tell them of Kings Landing then they can take it back"

She looked at her expectedly, a growing conviction in her eyes of the right course.

A moment of silence passed between them.

"...Do you know where the Roseroad is?"

The Warden shook her head.

All the confidence seemed to vacate Elia's body as she stared the warrior woman with sheer disbelief.

"Who are you? Where do you come from?"

Suddenly, images filled the Wardens mind.

 _She was standing in the middle of a keep, one of the many that dotted Ashfeld. All around her were black ravens, so many that they blotted out the sun. She looked down and beneath her was a pile of broken corpses, dead eyes and dead faces looking up at her with empty, lifeless gazes._

 _There was a fire somewhere. Smoke drifted to her nose._

" _Well done" she heard the clapping of gauntleted hands from behind her_.

 _She did not wish to turn around. The voice drove a spike of fear down her spine._

 _She felt a hand on her shoulder. She saw the black claws of a raven out the corner of her eye. It dripped red with blood. "Now we move on to the next keep, Harbinger"_

 _The stench of death drifted to her nose._

* * *

Elia raised a brow, one arm instinctively soothing Rhaenys as she waited on her increasingly concerning saviour.

"...Ash. My name is...Ash"

Elai narrowed her eyes. _Not a name I recognise from any region this side of the Narrow Sea. Still, he has risked his life to save me and my children and for that I am ever thankful._

"Very well, Ser Ash" She nodded "I thank you for taking me this far and for all that you have done to protect me"

She turned to the side, pointing "But I must ask more of you for my children and I are not yet safe and" she coughed "The journey will be fraught with yet more danger. Come, please"

She beckoned but the Knight held up a hand. "One moment"

She watched as he bent down by the water, swung his visor open and washed his face.

 _Oh yes, he is injured_. Looking around, then down at the tattered remains of her dress, Elia shrugged and ripped a length of silk. She approached him and offered it "Here, to bind your wound"

The face that turned to her was not one she expected.

 _A woman!?_

Yes, despite the scars, the many, many scars, the face beneath the visor was feminine and the moonlight caught just right for the Princess to see a pair of dark, forest green eyes. The lady Knight nodded to her then removed her helmet. Gold blonde hair, tied into a tight braid with loose strands, flowed behind her reaching just past her shoulders.

Little Rhaenys, who had so far been hiding behind her, let out a gasp. Then "Visenya?" the little girl said tentatively.

It was enough for Elia to get her wits back together. She knelt and helped her saviour with the gash above the woman's brow, washing away the blood with seawater then pressing a cloth the woman procured from one of her pouches. "Hold this" she instructed, pressing the cloth to the wound. As she bound it in place with her length of silk she spoke to her now curious daughter.

"No sweetling, this is, erm, Lady Ash of…" she trailed off, looking the woman in the eye. "Where are you from?"

Something flickered in those forest green orbs before the woman blinked and stood. "Ashfeld"

Elia sighed and stood as well. This close she could see that Ash was taller than her by at least a head. _More and more I believe you are truly sent from the Stranger. That, or you are a simpleton. To lie so blatantly, what do you hope to achieve?_

"Yes, Lady Ash of Ashfeld" The Princess went along with it. At this point she was trusting more in Ash' actions than her very questionable word.

Rhaenys tilted her head, confused. Elia managed a small, fond smile and ruffled the girl's soaked hair.

"Come, let us not delay. I do not feel safe this close to the city" She lead the group away from their beached boat, Ash donning her helmet once more.

* * *

The first signs of trouble were the remains of a looted cart, overturned on the side of the Roseroad.

Ash brought them to a halt, visored helm looking around for signs of an ambush. Only when she was reasonably sure that there were none did she investigate. Whatever the cart had been carrying was gone for there was nothing nearby that could have belonged there. On the other side she saw what remained of the cart's owners. Two adults and three children, one man and one woman and three boys, all dead.

She signalled the all clear to Elia who approached with caution, Rhaenys in hand and Aegon still swaddled. Once she saw the other side she blanched, turning her head, as well Rhaenys', away.

"Could have mentioned that…" the Princess grumbled, then sighed, eying the dead with grim calculation. "I...I suppose we can use their clothing"

Ash nodded and proceeded to quickly strip the dead.

Elia tried to crush the queasy feeling in her stomach and the protests on her lips. _Could have been done with more respect, surely?_

Ash procured a gown that was a size too large for Elia and boys clothing which fit, with some adjustment, on Rhaenys, as well as sturdier footwear than the soft sandals meant for indoors the royals had been wearing up to that point. Their drenched silks they kept as it was easy and light enough to pack away, not to mention being useful as binding and bandages. The dead also gave them a small package of food, fruits and cheese which were eagerly consumed. The cart and bodies thoroughly picked over the party carried on, Elia urging them forward to get as much distance away.

Ash noticed the way the woman's hands shook, as well as the paleness of her skin under the moonlight, but said nothing. Those peasants did not drop dead of their own accord after all.

The rumble of hooves was the second sign of trouble.

Ash brought her greatsword to bear on a guard position as, ahead of them, four riders in Lannister garb blocked the road. Elia hid behind the steel-clad woman and tightened her hold on Rhaenys.

The four horsemen carried torches illuminating their forms in the darkness of the night. They sat, silent for a moment, watching. Then on a command two of them threw down their torches and pulled out longswords, spurring their horses onwards to a charge.

Ash might as well have been a statue for all that she moved as the two came thundering at her.

Closer and closer they came, dark shapes like wraiths and still Ash remained steady.

Elia hunkered down, covering Rhaenys with her own body and prayed.

As they came close, so close that Ash could see the whites of the horses eyes, she let fly her dagger.

The blade flew true and struck a horse in its eye sending both horse and rider to the ground.

The other horseman slashed at the Warden.

The Warden hewed his arm off.

He rode away screaming.

The other two horsemen were startled into action, throwing their torches and charging with blades.

Ash finished off the rider on the ground, recovered her dagger and prepared to receive a charge.

The two horsemen veered off each other, one moving to outflank the lone Warden.

Ash waited, keeping her front towards one horseman, hands slowly moving across the handle of her sword.

They charged, swords high.

Ash turned as both horsemen closed, lashing out with a thrust at the rider behind her. Momentum and muscle worked in deadly tandem, skewering the horseman on her greatsword.

The other cut a deep slash across the Warden's back.

Elia stifled a scream, holding onto Rhaenys even tighter.

Flinging the body away Ash deftly mounted the now riderless horse and brought it around, kicking harshly with her steel clad heels to spur the horse to chase.

The horseman ahead made a fast turn, prepared for another charge.

The Wardens greatsword lopped his head off, helmet and all.

It landed on the grass, a permanent expression of surprise on its face.

* * *

Elia finished wrapping the makeshift silk bandage around the blonde's body, pointedly ignoring the multitude of that scars that covered her. Or how her own hands were shaking, even with the warmer clothing.

"There" the Princess tightened the knot "Try to keep still, the stitching is fresh and not my best work under these conditions. Though, how you can even move at all is nothing short of miraculous"

Elia might not have been a fighter but having been around the most seasoned Knights of the realm gave her some knowledge of how much a man can endure. The woman before her should have at least been moaning in pain with a gash that deep across her back but no, she remained as stoic as ever. In fact, looking at her face, Elia could see that Ash was confused at her concern, as if such an injury was a daily occurrence that did not warrant anything more than a passing glance.

 _Though, by the number of scars you bear, such thinking might not be so far fetched._

They had scavenged the dead, this time Elia hardly feeling a lick of guilt, and appropriated for themselves two horses and supplies and equipment, including a sewing kit which Elia put to use.

Currently they made camp at a distance from the Roseroad in a ditch to keep hidden. While Elia would have loved to have some more warmth they did not light a fire for fear of discovery so, as to not freeze, they huddled up together like rabbits. Ash had taken off her armour to smooth out the inside and repair as much as she could, leaving her in a pair of leather breeches and a woolen shirt dyed orange and black.

As they huddled, little Rhaenys sleeping between them and Aegon comfortably swaddled, Elia tried not to be too obvious in her attempts to draw as much heat from the other woman as possible. Compared to her slender, shivering and exhausted form Ash could not have been anymore the opposite. Her muscles were well defined and the flesh covered in scars, some so large the Princess wondered how the woman's arms were still attached. She was warm too and showed little signs of exhaustion.

Elia did not even realise she was tracing a particularly vicious scar until Ash spoke "A Berserker's axe"

Startled, she pulled her hand away and her body would have followed too if she were not so utterly tired. "Oh, I apologise"

"Hm" Ash shrugged "He swung hard, buried it right to the bone"

It took a moment for her mind to comprehend that statement.

 _Who are you, Stranger-sent? Are you truly an agent of death?_

She sighed and shook her head. "I see". _I wish I didn't._

"Sleep, I'll keep watch"

Elia didn't even argue.

* * *

In the silence of the night, with Elia and her children and the cat asleep, the Warden wondered what she was doing, what she had been doing since she opened her eyes to ash and fire.

 _Cowardice,_ her mind answered her in a voice of a woman whose presence made her tremble. _You fled, ran away._

She couldn't argue against that.

And yet, she did not feel the shame, the revulsion she had felt from before. Disgust at her own actions, anger at her cowardice in continuing to commit them. The hopelessness of it all.

Protecting. It was because she was protecting someone, _something_. Something worthwhile.

It felt good.

Looking at the frail beauty huddled close to her, to the young child with silver hair and to the small babe Ash felt, for the first time in her life, like it was worth it.


	2. Chapter 2-Promise

A/N: This really should be in the first chapter but oh well.

First of all thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows. Nothing like a good ole ego boost to get you through the day and they are mightily appreciated.

However, I really should have mentioned that my knowledge of the lore is not as encompassing as I would like. Ive stopped watching at around season 3/4 (ive not even read the books) and i've not even finished the For Honor campaign yet so yea, this fic is a patchwork of knowledge so we'll see how far that gets me. Hopefully, by bumbling through, pretty far. I draw a lot of my information from the wiki, youtube videos (both theories covering the books and the extra stuff from DVD's), other fanfics and show clips.

Also, I wrote at least 60% of the first chapter as I came home drunk. It was an inspirational moment.

Now that I've left you all with utter confidence in my abilities, on to the story.

Thank you again for the reviews, favourites and follows. They are really appreciated.

* * *

Ned had been at war for many months. He had been there at the Battle of the Bells, bringing the might of the combined hosts of the North, the Riverlands and the Vale. The town of Stoney Sept was mauled then, by the fighting which had been street to street and house to house but the rebels, for the most part, did not do much to the town afterwards leaving it scarred but intact.

Kings Landing was another matter entirely.

At the head of the van Ned had seen the great plumes of smoke coming from the city. He knew then that the Lannisters had thrown their lot in with the rebels, for what other force could conduct an attack of the city?

The closer and closer he got however the realisation began to set in; this was not a siege assault but a full blown sacking.

He spurred his men on with strict orders to prevent the fires, and the slaughter, from spreading while he took his most trusted and skilled men with him, heading straight for the Red Keep.

As he rode he passed by many scenes of a grisly nature and he grit his teeth, passing them by but not forgetting them. Never forgetting.

The path to the Red Keep, looking all the more sinister due to the shadows cast by the flames, was cleared. Lannister soldiers, many with bloodied swords and full pockets, looked at them but paid them no heed or even cheered for them when they saw the grey direwolf that was the banner for his house.

He ignored them.

Eventually he and his men arrived to see that the last defenders of King's Landing, the last of Prince Rhaegar's once mighty army, were dead at the steps of the Red Keep. Pushing on he sought out the throne room, though by this point it was only to confirm what he assumed had happened to the Mad King.

More Lannister soldiers passed him by until, eventually, he reached the throne room.

To find the Mad King dead at the foot of the grand Iron Throne.

To see Jaime Lannister, with his sword across his lap dripping blood, sat upon it.

Ned looked at Jaime, at the man's sword, at his golden Kingsguard armour, then stared at the man's face.

Jaime flashed him a cocky grin though it looked a weary and tired one.

Ned had nothing to say. Nothing he _could_ say.

A Kingsguard had just killed his King.

"Fire!"

Ned and Jaime turned to the entrance of the throne room where a Lannister soldier was shouting and pointing "Fire milords! Fire! Fire at Maegor's Holdfast!"

Ned looked over at Jamie and couldn't make out the expression on the other man's face. He turned away, deciding it didn't matter and ordered his men to follow and help fight the flames.

It was a struggle to fight the fire and in the end the best they could do was to throw firebreaks and prevent it from spreading. The fire had already consumed the fourth floor of Maegor's Holdfast and was starting to crawl its way down when the Lannister soldiers had reported it. While its spread downwards was prevented it still spread upwards, consuming the fifth floor and with it the King's Royal Quarters

Howland Reed, one of his closest friends, stood to his side and put a hand on his Lord's shoulder as they watched the flames from outside.

"You did the best you could my lord"

Ned sighed.

"The night isnt over yet my friend" he replied.

* * *

Elia awoke the next morning feeling like a giant sore spot, which really was the truth of the matter. Even trying to move to soothe her badly bruised cheek was an effort not worth the pain.

 _Oh, I have a fever as well. Joy._

It worried her, truly, how frail she was at this moment, how frail she had been most of her life. Living in Dorne or the Red Keep she could take her time and not exhaust herself and even if she did she could take her time to rest. Here and now, the ugly realisation was setting in that she could truly exhaust herself to death.

She looked down at her baby Aegon and only now realised he was awake and crying. Her hand had been soothing him on instinct but it was clear he wanted something else.

 _Oh little baby_. Shifting about she began to feed him, his cries immediately quieting down.

Leaning back, she surveyed the 'camp'.

Not much had changed from the previous, nightmarish night. Thankfully that included the weather which remained clear and with the summer sun she was starting to warm up. Rhaenys was huddled up to her side, idly petting Belerion and Elia grit her teeth and stilled her heart at the blank look on her normally expressive daughter.

 _My lovely baby girl, you should never have seen any of this._

In front of her Ash was cleaning her sword, a great length of steel five feet long. Elia thought it looked much like its owner: sturdy, strong and scarred.

Bloodied, too. She could see one rag dripping red in the blonde's belt and another was already haflway soaked.

Elia leaned back against the soft grass and breathed through her mouth, nose stuffed and red.

One she opened her eyes she saw Ash looking at her.

"Can we move?" the other woman asked.

Elia saw the question for what it was. _Can you move?_.

Sniffling, she breathed deep and nodded, her eyes shining with determination. She would live, for her children. She would push on for them.

Ash nodded at her with the slightest upturn of her lips.

* * *

They had a modest breakfast of looted hardtack and jerky, washed down with watered ale, which took the Royals some time to force down their throats. Then the group set on their horses and rode off side by side, keeping the road to their right. Elia rode with her children, and the cat, while Ash kept to her right. They made good distance with their looted horses across the rough ground and by midday they had yet to spot anyone, and no-one had spotted them.

Ash felt uneasy about it. A main road and the fields around it being so empty was not a good sign, though she did not voice her concerns. It was a strange new land after all and she did not yet kill enough of the enemy to know how well they went about their business. She could only hope that the cavalry patrols did not range that far off the road and that the farmers were not risking it with horsemen marauding about. Besides she had other, more immediate, problems to be concerned about. Namely her companion's illness.

Elia was going grey, her sun-tanned skin losing colour as the day progressed. Ash knew how to bind wounds and stop it from festering but this was not an illness that needed those skills. No, this was an illness that needed rest-time and food, things they did not have much of.

The Warden shook her head. _Not much to do, until we find a safe place to stop. Though..._

She fingered one of her pouches, feeling for something. _Yes, it could help, but it may do more harm._

As they crested a small hill Ash saw the mass expanse of trees that Elia had said was the forest known as Kingswood. To her right, thankfully still there, she could barely make out the flat stretch that was the Roseroad going into the forest.

"The Roseroad forks ahead, we must take the left and follow that road to Storms End and the Tyrell army" Elia said.

Ash nodded "The forest will be a safe place"

Elia turned to her, mouth open to argue but instead coughed a throaty cough.

"A safe place"

Elia sighed and nodded.

* * *

Ash saw the figure sink behind a tree as they went further into the forest, risking using the Road so as not to get lost amongst the woods.

Subtly, she moved her horse to get closer to Elia. "We're being watched"

The woman's head jerked towards her and Ash took hold of her hand. "Dont look around" the Warden warned.

To the Dornishwoman's credit she didnt, though her eyes did. She held tighter onto Rhaenys who had so far been quiet since she had woken up.

Ash put herself in front and gradually slowed their pace, drifting to the left side of the road away from where she spotted the scout.

"If they attack, turn and hide" she spoke quietly.

Elia nodded, a pained reluctance in her expression. "Be safe" the Princess whispered.

A minute had passed before their observers made themselves known.

Ash slowed them to a stop. Ahead, the road had been blocked by a train of wagons tied together. The barricade was manned by rough looking men clad mostly in leather and wielding spears, axes and bows with only a couple of swords amongst them. On a quick scan the Warden counted twelve men, and a further four in the woods to her side.

"Welcome to the Kingswood milady!" One of them called out, a man wearing half plate over a brigandine and one of the few who wielded a sword. "To make sure you get home all safe and sound-"

"-And in one piece!" Another called out.

"-Aye, and in one piece, this 'ere road needs a toll"

Ash remained silent, Elia taking her que.

The bandit shrugged and looked to the others.

"Kill them!"

Arrows flew in their direction but pinged harmlessly off Ash' armour as she surged forwards greatsword in hand. Elia hesitated but turned and fled, whispering a blessing on her protector.

* * *

Brenn expected the Knight to attack, prepared for it even. It was why he had his spearmen and archers on the wagons. He knew the Knight would attack because their heads filled with foolish notions of honour and chivalry and that they were the children of this and that from this long ago. That meant they were special, that they were stronger than anyone else, better than anyone else.

Brenn knew better though. Any man can kill any other man just fine, provided he had an advantage, hence the spears. For all a Knights stupidity, their horses were much smarter and wouldn't charge into pointy steel. He'd seen that much when his old lord had called him up to fight the Tyrells. Just a shame that the Tyrells had more horses that they had spears.

So, he was confident that a lone Knight, even wearing plate and chain and holding a bloody great big sword, would fail. The fool would charge, his horse would stop and Brenn and his men would swarm the idiot and hack him to bits while he struggled to get his mount in control.

What he did not expect was for the Knight to _jump_ from his horse and impale him with five feet of murderous metal.

* * *

Rhaenys watched with wide eyes from behind the tree they hid from as Lady Ash - _Visenya -_ threw a bandit off her sword and proceeded to behead two more, all before the others even reacted.

Mother may have said the Knight was Lady Ash but Rhaenys didn't, couldn't, believe that. She may not of had the silver-white hair or the purple eyes of the Targaeryans but the warrior woman could not have been anyone else other than Visenya, or Visenya reborn. Or Visenya's soul in another body. Either way it had to be Visenya, _had_ to be! She heard the tales of Aegon and his two sisters and she had alway listened, enraptured when her nursemaid and mother told tales of Visenya's bravery and prowess in battle and how she rode the mighty dragon Vhagar. For the longest time she wished she had a sister, a Visenya to her and little Aegon.

When she had been under that bed, when she felt a strong arm grab her and lift her, when she came face to face with that hideous monster, she prayed for someone, something, to save her.

Then she saw the monster's head come clean off and the memory of it all was so burned into her mind that she could still feel the blood splattering across her face, the smell of iron in her nose and those forest green eyes behind visor slits.

She couldn't help but continue to relive that moment and every time those green eyes turned more and more purple.

Visenya was said to be a great warrior who wielded Dark Sister. Lady Ash did not have a valyrian steel blade but was a great warrior nonetheless. Rhaenys saw how she flowed between her enemies despite her heavy armour as if it was not hindering her at all, like it was a second skin, with her greatsword darting and hewing to and fro and always, always hitting. Even when the bandits hit her with an axe or spear she did not falter. None stood for long under her assault and in what felt like mere moments she had taken down half of the bandits.

Suddenly she was pulled away by her mother as both turned to see one bandit standing in front of them, threatening them with a spear.

"Get out there and tell 'im to stop, now!" He yelled at them, jabbing with his weapon. Her mother kept Rhaenys behind her and handed over little Aegon who started to fus and cry. Rhaenys held him tight to her chest as the horse whinnied and backed away.

"Call 'im off or ill jab ye'!" The man threatened again and they backed away from the woods and back on the road, Mother holding her hands out and trying to placate the man while also trying to control the horse who was increasingly panicking.

The bandit seemed to have lost whatever patience he had as he lunged at the horse which reared back. Rhaenys lost her hold of her Mother's gown and fell on the road, her cry of panic cut short as she hit her head on the cobblestones.

The world seemed to blur and there was the sound of water rushing in her ears as she stared up at the sky. She turned her head, looking for Lady Ash, to call for help but it was all so _hard_ and _slow_. It was like struggling through custard until finally she managed to see the lady Knight, who was stood atop a wagon looking in their direction.

It took a moment for Rhaenys to see it.

 _Oh, her sword is flying._

The great hunk of steel was indeed in flight, cartwheeling end over end, soon passing her line of vision.

She was feeling tired all of a sudden, like there were great weights on her eyelids.

 _But...I have to call for help...Visenya..will...help._

Her eyes drifted shut.

* * *

She didn't mean to throw her blade, it was just...how she reacted when Elia screamed. When she turned her head and saw Rhaenys falling to the floor, saw the Dornishwoman struggle with her horse, saw the spearman about to impale her, it was the best thing she could come up with.

Still, it worked. The great blade slammed into the spearman knocking him down where he was then trampled by the panicking horse who darted off into the woods, Elia hanging on for dear life.

Which left the children alone.

Her mind was consumed by thoughts of little Rhaenys. Of failure. Of another burning keep. Of more dead eyes gazing emptily at her.

 _Ravens circled above, blood dripping from their talons. Smoke drifted to her nose_.

She caught the axe by the grip before it hit, twisted it out of her attackers hold and pulled the man towards her, then buried his own axe into his head. The body tumbled off the side of the wagon.

A spearman went in with a thrust. She twisted out of the way, grabbed the shaft, pulled it and booted him in the face. She finished him by diving and driving the spear through his skull.

Two more axemen came at her and she shoved the body of the spearman to one side, threw one arming dagger at one of the men which hit his shoulder and charged the other with her other dagger in hand. Her opponent raised his shield and she shoulder barged him back. He struggled, then slipped and she dived him, plunging a dagger into his face.

Quickly she turned to the other axeman who had dropped his shield when her dagger hit. She finished him with a punch to the stomach and a dagger to the throat.

As the body fell she looked around and saw the other bandits had decided to cut their losses and run for it.

 _Rhaenys._

She turned, vaulted over a wagon and sprinted as fast as she could.

* * *

"Stop, stop you ungainly beast!" Elia gripped the horse's hair and pulled tight on the reigns, frantically trying to reign it in. She struggled, desperate to return to her children. Her heart hammered in her chest, she felt lightheaded and weak, barely able to hold on to the panicking animal but hold on she did and eventually, it calmed.

She collapsed on its neck, breathing hard and nearly slipped from the horse anyway.

 _Up, up! Get up!_

It took a long moment, far longer that she liked, for her body to obey her mind.

Looking around Elia despaired when she saw she was surrounded by woods and not a road to be seen.

 _No, no no no! Rhaenys, Aegon!_

She breathed deeply, forcing her shaking arms to still and her frantic heart to calm.

 _I am a Princess of Dorne. I am a Mother. My children need me._

 _I am a Princess of Dorne. I am a Mother. My children need me._

 _I am a Mother._

 _My children need me to be calm._

With gritted teeth she forced herself to be calm. Her panic subsided and her shaking stilled.

 _Breathe. Yes, Breathe deeply. Now, I need to find a way back._

She scanned behind her and then around, brow creased in concentration and frustration.

 _How, how...Tracks? Yes, the horse should have left tracks when it ran. I should follow those, though I have to find them first._

From horseback it was a difficult task and she did not dare get off in case the horse bolted again. It still seemed panicky, head swinging side to side and moving erratically, so she maintained her tight hold onto it.

 _Now, how did the men do this?_

She tried to recall her many conversations with the men in her life where they boasted about their hunting exploits and the joy of the kill, and gods know she had had plenty of those, and quickly came to the realisation that they didn't speak much about actually tracking the animals, only the killing.

 _Of course, utterly useless!_

She sighed, forcing frustration ahead of the burning panic and mounting fear.

Slowly, carefully, and with much leaning over the saddle, she tried to retrace her steps. Mostly, she tried to find patches of ground where horse-prints were clear and visible but in a forest underbrush filled with leaves and twigs it was a difficult task. It was made all the more difficult by the horse which continued to act twitchy and ready to bolt again at any moment.

 _Why is this horse so agitated?_ Elia growled in frustration, utterly tired of having to struggle to get the horse to stay still.

Tired people make mistakes however. Tired, ill and pressured people even moreso.

So she missed first wolf jumping at her horse.

It was large, with brown fur streaked with grey. Its long glistening teeth and razor sharp claws sank into the horse's neck. A second wolf followed shortly after taking the horse down and Elia with it. Two more jumped out of the woods to tear into the horse's belly and the forest was filled with the piercing cry of a dying horse.

Elia screamed too, as she tried to escape. Her leg was caught under the weight of the horse when it was taken down and she desperately tried to wriggle it free before the wolves turned their attention to her. Thankfully, by a miracle, she managed when the horse tried to stand in a desperate attempt to escape.

Thanking all the gods that the wolves were busy tearing into her horse Elia made a run for it, only to come face to face with another wolf, this one smaller than the rest and all black.

 _No, no no no!_

It lunged at her and she jumped back, landing on her butt. Quickly scrambling she turned and tried to flee but the black wolf jumped at her again and managed to bite into her shoulder. Elia screamed as she felt the white hot pain course through her and in her panicked arm flailing she managed to hit it on its eye forcing it away.

Crawling on hands and knees, her overly long gown catching and tearing on the forest floor, long hair near blinding her Elia reached the base of a tree and tried to use it to get back on her feet but it proved fruitless and she collapsed against it, sliding down on her back. She was too weak, her strength drained to its last and it took all she had to even remain conscious and breathing. With bleary, tear filled eyes she watched the black wolf approach her, sharp fangs set in a snarl.

 _Oh gods, please, save my children, keep them safe._

The wolf pounced, fangs barred.

She closed her eyes.

A whoosh of air blew her hair.

Something wet and warm splattered across her face.

She could taste blood.

* * *

Her sword cleaved through a the wolf's head and she urged her horse on as the other wolves heard the cry of their now dead runt.

Rhaenys, barely conscious but alive, was tied onto her back with a hastily fashioned harness, though it was more two lengths of rope tied with a knot than anything else. Aegon, who had been crying non stop since the fall off the horse, was tightly swaddled to stop him flailing his arms and was secured to her chest.

Ash charged the wolves who scattered before her and she went after the biggest one. She had fought wolves before, the Vikings deployed the animals in many roles, and she understood that the Alpha would be the biggest problem.

Her first swing against it missed, cutting a tree the Alpha ducked behind. Squeezing her thighs and swinging her body she maneuvered her horse out of the pounce of a second wolf while thrusting her sword at another. It hit, gouging a line along its snout and face and taking an eye along the way.

Holding the end of her blade she levered her body to the other side and brought her crossguard onto the head of a pouncing wolf, clobbering it then slamming it against a tree. Before it even breathed it last Ash turned her head and saw another wolf behind.

Keeping her reverse grip she drew her blade across her body and stabbed backwards right into the wolf's mouth. It choked, whined and died.

 _Three down, two left._

She turned her horse with a squeeze of her thighs and spurring of her heel.

She saw the Alpha again, its large form as tall as her horse's legs. It was growling, face bloody, fangs dripping crimson and staring at her with golden eyes.

There was a moment of silence, a pause.

Snarling it darted to the side, quicker than its bulk suggested. It made three great bounds, moving deftly across roots and floor and pounced at her left side, bloody maw wide.

Ashe held out her left arm, hand holding an arming dagger in reverse.

When all four paws left the ground she flipped the dagger.

The Alpha couldnt stop in mid air.

It impaled itself as its jaws closed around Ash's arm, long teeth biting into and through chainmail.

Ash finished it with her other dagger.

Once the great beast was dead she pried its mouth open and dumped it on the ground, spurring her horse to Elia.

* * *

Panting, shivering and covered in sweat and blood Elia imagined she looked at outright mess when Ash made all haste to her side. The woman dumped her sword and helmet onto the floor as she dismounted and Elia even through blurry eyes could see rare emotion on the blonde's face.

 _Oh, she's_ worried. Her thoughts were slow, her head feeling airy.

Ash carefully placed Rhaenys, her sweet, breathing Rhaenys, with a bandage wrapped around her head, against the tree and placed Aegon on top. The babe had stopped loudly crying but was now reduced to sobbing, tears and snot rolling down his red cheeks.

Elia felt a sudden flash of strength. Her children needed her and she made to reach out to them but Ash took hold of her frail arms and she sagged, her strength leaving her.

"Drink" The lady Knight put a phial of something to her lips and all but forced it down her throat, holding her head back and soothing it down so the Princess didn't choke.

It was a bittersweet thing, with traces of herbs and a floral fragrance.

"It will help fight off infection and illness but..." Ash shook her head "Do not exert yourself, your fever has gotten worse and your wound needs dressing"

Her eyes locked onto Ash's, chestnut brown to forest green, then drifted to her children.

"Promise me…" Elia whispered "Promise me Ash...keep them safe"

The Warden squeezed her hand and nodded, never once breaking eye contact.

"I will. And you as well"

It was enough for her and she let herself drift off to slumber.


	3. Chapter 3-To Dorne

A/N: Thank you guys very much for the reviews, follows and favourites! They are all truly apreciated.

* * *

Ned felt like he had barely laid his head down when he was awoken and told of Robert's and Jon Arryn's arrival with the main army.

Affixing Ice onto his back he followed his guard to the throne room of the Red Keep. There he found Robert, Jon Arryn and Tywin Lannister in discussion, and going by the look of contempt on Robert's face and Jon's tired expression, it was not a pleasant conversation.

"No!" Robert bellowed out once Ned reached them, voice carrying in the throne room. "I am betrothed to my woman! Do not bring this up with me again!"

Tywin reeled back at the force of the shout but the Lion of Casterly Rock maintained his cool, almost indifferent, expression and nodded "As you will, my lord"

The man turned and Ned locked eyes with him for a moment. Both inclined their heads to the other with slow reluctance and then Tywin strode out.

"Ned!" He felt himself get pulled into an embrace by wide, strong arms. Chuckling Ned patted Robert on the back.

"You've recovered, Rob?"

The Baratheon nodded "Aye, bastard cunt managed to get a few good hits on me before I caved his chest in" Bobern laughed cruelly as he hefted his warhammer and Ned was disturbed to see the clear expression of joy on his face. Roberts anger, the infamous Baratheon fury of his blood and House, had apparently not abated the slightest since the Trident.

Ned grit his teeth as he felt a cold sensation take hold of his heart.

"Did you find her Ned? Is Lyanna here?" From cruel to hopeful, Robert's anger went as it came.

Ned shook his head with a resigned sigh "No, me and my men searched all over the Red Keep and we found no trace of her. What servants there are left alive and able told us that Lyanna was never brought here and not even the Pri-Rhaegar was seen in the Red Keep since he took my sister"

Fury returned to Robert's eyes and he let out an angry bellow, slamming his warhammer onto floor breaking the tiles and sending dust and debris spraying. Once, twice and the hammer lifted for a third time before a shout rang out in the throne room.

"ROBERT! CALM!" Jon Arryn seized the man by the shoulder and forced him to stop, not an easy feat considering the Arryn's age and thinner build but the older man had all but become Robert's father and even the Baratheon's fury was reduced to a simmer at Jon's command.

"Robert, I know times have been difficult but such reckless anger will help no one. Not you, not Ned and most certainly not Lyanna!" Though he was admonishing Ned could hear the sympathy in Jon's voice.

Robert dropped his warhammer and slumped against the base of the Iron Throne. "Im sorry Jon, just…" he shook his head and sighed.

Jon patted him on the shoulder before turning to Ned with a tired smile "What else have you found out Ned?"

Ned kept his eyes on Robert for a moment before replying "Since Rhaegar wasn't seen in the capital he must have fled further south, either to the Reach or Dorne since they remain loyal. Rhaella and her children were said to have been escorted out to Dragonstone but Elia Martell and her children were supposed to be here. Though…"

"Go on"

Ned contemplated the events of the previous night, thinking more carefully "There was a fire at Maegor's Holdfast, the top two levels where the Royal Chambers are, or were"

"HA!" Robert shouted as he got back up his feet "Tell me those dragonspawn burned!"

Ned felt as if time had stopped as he stared at his friend, his brother in all but blood, utterly aghast. The ice in his blood froze and he was completely at a loss for words.

"Robert, they are children" he finally managed to get out.

Robert scoffed and that utter dismissal, that careless contempt for life, for innocent life, set something off in Ned's blood. The sight of King's Landing burning, the atrocities, the pain and exhaustion, it all became too much for Ned to hold his tongue.

For the first time in their long relationship he truly, utterly hated Robert in that moment.

And he let him know it.

That morning the fury of winter clashed with the rage of a storm and the links of a friendship forged so long ago between two boys far from home was permanently, irrevocably broken.

* * *

Jon Arryn prodded at the ashes, watching them drift away.

"Nothing here milord" One of his men reported as they came out of another room.

Jon nodded, continuing to poke amongst the ashes.

"Milord! Over here!"

Looking over his shoulder Jon could see one of his soldiers beckoning him to a room that, once he entered, was bigger than the others they had searched so far.

"Bodies, milord"

Indeed, there were bodies. As his men carefully cleared away the ash and soot that covered the burnt and blackened forms he could make out the humanoid shape, though he rather wished he could not.

 _Not a pleasant end, burning._

There were two he could see in the room. Kneeling, Jon inspected the burned out husks, trying to determine what it would have originally looked like.

 _Both are headless._ He took out his dagger and ran it along the line of their necks, bits of ash flaking away in the wake of steel. _Clean enough cuts, so it must have been intentional._

"Milord" His soldier, a sergeant Mallister if he remembered correctly, poked at a long, straight, black, hard lump on the ground with his sword. "Looks like something melted, something big"

"Hmmm" Jon stroked his thin white beard in thought. "Curious indeed. If these were once men, who could they be? I remember Elia Martell being a rather petite woman"

Mallister shrugged, looking a little queasy "Maybe the smaller one could be, milord. But" he prodded the larger of the corpses "This one, no. Too big. Far too big to be a woman"

It was a very large corpse even when charred and blackened. Squinting his eyes Jon carefully brushed away the ashes where the corpse's hand was. Or supposed to be.

"The hand has been cut off"

Mallister nodded "Aye, milord. It...it looks like there was a fight here. A lot of these cuts are too clean to have been burned away"

Standing, Jon nodded to the man, a worried expression on his face "That may be the case, but this warrants further investigation. Keep searching and until we know more, I would have that only you and your men conduct the investigation"

The sergeant nodded "Aye, milord. It will be done"

Jon left the burned remains of the fourth floor of Maegor's holdfast, far more troubled than when he entered.

* * *

Ned was organising his men when Jon Arryn visited him.

Despite the morning's events, he still smiled for the man who became his father in all but blood and they shared a small meal of bread and dried meat.

"I intend to take the majority of our hosts and relieve the siege at Storm's End" he informed his foster father.

Jon Arryn nodded, giving him a look.

Ned sighed "And afterwards, I will go south and look for my sister. If the Tyrell's don't have her then I will go to Dorne. I...know a person who I can speak to"

Jon smiled a small smile, patting Ned on the shoulder "While you do that, I will stay in Kings Landing and ensure it doesn't all crumble to ash. But…"

Ned's brow furrowed "But what?"

"Ned" Jon breathed a sigh, looking around them before dropping his voice to a whisper "I do not think Elia Martell or her children are dead"

Ned set his bread down, listing intently.

"There were two bodies in the Royal Chambers and I am of the mind to think they are both men. Swords were found near them and their heads were cut off. I do not know much more than that but if my theory is correct it would mean Elia managed to orchestrate an escape, likely with some help"

Ned was wide-eyed at the revelation "Then she yet lives, and her children are likely with her"

Jon nodded " _May_ yet live, I do not know for certain. But if she does, I would hazard a guess she would go south, likely to Dorne or perhaps the Tyrells"

Ned was at a loss as to what to say.

"If you tread the same path, and if you find her…"

Ned's eyes turned to ice "I will _not murder-_ "

He was cut off as Jon shook his head "No, I will not ask that of you. If she is alive and you find her, convince her to leave Westeros. Tell her to sail to Essos or the Summer Isles, to Volantis ideally. Far away. Robert is consumed by anger as you well know, he already intends to kill Rhaella and Viserys"

Ned nodded "I shall. The sins of the father should not pass to his children"

Jon nodded and looking at him Ned could see how much his foster father had aged since this horrid war had begun. He only hoped it would all end soon.

"Well" Jon stood and Ned followed him "We should not delay then. Make haste to the Tyrell's Ned, end this war. Meanwhile I will find a way to placate Dorne, though, if Elia yet lives you may be able to do that yourself"

"Very well, I shall do my utmost. Goodbye Lord Arryn" Ned embraced the man.

Jon smiled, patting him on the shoulder as they parted "You always have. Safe travels, Lord Stark"

* * *

"Requiesta in pace" Ash murmured as she stared at the corpse. Long black hair had gone stiff, tanned skin turned a greyish blue and brown eyes whitened into murky, glassy orbs. There was no life in there anymore.

She should know, she had been the one to ram a sword through his chest.

Ash picked up a shovel and shifted dirt onto the body. It was a repetitive action, though not a familiar one, allowing her time to think.

 _Rhaenys will recover. Elia will struggle. Without Elia, Aegon will go hungry_.

After having fashioned a secure encampment using the material the bandits left behind, as well as the wolf skins, Ash set about cleaning up the mess and burying the bodies in the woods so as to not attract scavengers. Food and water were of no concern, there were plenty of supplies left over by the bandits and enough wolf meat to last for some time if she smoked or dried them.

The biggest problem however was Aegon. Elia simply couldn't feed him in her state and Ash didn't lactate. So far they had gotten by fine with boiled water but the Warden knew it would not be enough.

Seeing that the grave was filled Ash patted the earth down and turned to go back to camp, until the birds leapt from their perches. On guard, she stood still, honing her senses until she heard a whine, then a slow, almost mournful, howl carried by the wind.

She dropped the shovel, hefted her sword and put her helmet back on.

 _Wind's blowing from the east_.

She set off, long strides eating the distance until she found the source of the noise.

 _Ah. Last wolf._

Indeed, it was the wolf whose eye she had gouged out. It was laid at the base of a tree, huffing and puffing with a twisted front paw. As it sensed her it tried to stand but slipped on a tree root. Despite the misstep it still growled at her, turning its body so its one good eye faced her.

Ash could see it was a she-wolf and that gave her an idea.

The Warden planted her sword into the ground and approached the beast, undoing her utility belt and holding it in one hand.

It growled at her, showing sharp teeth.

Closer and closer the Warden came and louder and louder the wolf became until Ash got so close the wolf took the chance and lunged.

Ash was prepared for it.

She dodged to the side and caught the wolf in a headlock but it was fast, quickly swinging its head over to try and bite at her hands while its paws raked against her back and sides, scratching plate and chain.

They struggled on the ground but the Warden had the advantage of being able to plant her feet. Holding the wolf down she mounted it, then wrapped her belt around the she-wolf's mouth to tie its jaws shut. She ripped her already battered tabard and used the strips to tie its paws together. Eventually she managed to subdue it and the she-wolf ceased its struggles, though not its growling.

She huffed, patting the animal's stomach. _Let's see if this works._

Removing a gauntlet Ash took a teat and gently massaged it. She smiled a triumphant smile when a trickle of white spilled out.

* * *

The Warden returned to the camp by nightfall.

The wagons the bandits used were now on their side, acting as walls. Placed between trees and lashed in place with rope they formed a vaguely circular shape. In its center was a campfire in a dugout pit lined with rocks and near the 'entrance' she hitched her horse. Over a section of the inside she hung the wolf pelts she managed to skin as well as a few pieces of clothing between crisscrossed rope lines to act as a roof where, underneath, Elia lay on a bed of leaves with clothing acting as a bedsheet. To her side was Rhaenys who was gently rocking Aegon.

When the young girl spotted her she smiled a broad smile, beautiful amethyst eyes lighting up, eyes that widened upon seeing the wolf over Ash' shoulders.

Ash carefully placed the she-wolf down on its side, keeping in mind where all its sharp and pointy bits were and where they could be in an instant if given the space to move. She leaned on it's belly though not her full weight, removed her helmet and beckoned Rhaenys to come closer.

"Carefully Rhaenys"

The girl did so, and Ash gently took Aegon from her and instantly the baby started crying and fussing. With some careful shifting she managed to get Aegon's mouth to latch onto a nipple and naturally the baby began nursing.

And did not spit.

Ash breathed a sigh of relief but for only a moment, the she-wolf was still alive after all.

"Ohhh! This is like a story from the Age of Heroes!" Rhaenys gushed, curiously moving her head to look through various angles at Aegon feeding. "The baby prince suckling on a wolf to grow into a strong and valiant warrior!"

Ash chuckled, then fell to silence.

Rhaenys wasn't having it though. "So what is your favourite story Vi-Lady Ash?"

"Hmmm" Ash contemplated the question. "I...dont remember"

The little girl seemed shocked, gasping with hands over her mouth "What?! How can you not remember the stories your Mother or Father or Nana told you?"

She looked over at the little Princess and there must have been something in her expression as Rhaenys shot her a concerned look.

"Lady Ash?"

She tapped idly on the she-wolf as she thought "I...I do not remember my mother, or my father and I don't think I had a nana, as such"

 _She stood alone, ash raining around her, on her, covering her small form. Everything was empty, all was gone. Then came the cawing of ravens and the stampede of horses._

 _She saw her then. Tall, black and bloody._

 _Her face was suddenly there, in front of her. Blood leaked out of the holes on her helmet. The smell of iron filled her nose._

" _Ah, a survivor. I wonder girl, are you a wolf or a sheep?"_

Ash was brought back to earth by Rhaenys wrapping her small arms around her neck.

"Im sorry Lady Ash! I didnt mean to make you cry" The girl seemed genuinely worried.

Ash gently pried her off and gave her what she hoped was a good enough smile "No, it isn't your fault"

 _I didn't realise I was crying._ The Warden wiped her eyes and indeed there were little tears there. _Huh._

Rhaenys seemed unsure but she nodded. Then she brightened "Oh, since you dont know any storied how about I tell you the best ones I know!"

Ash chuckled, a warm feeling growing in her chest to chase away the painful weight of memory "Please"

And so, Ash spent the night listening as Rhaenys recalled her favorite tales until eventually the children fell into slumber, Aegon with a full belly for the first time in a while and Rhaenys chatting herself to exhaustion.

* * *

The Warden watched, hidden, as the army passed through the Kingswood. They marched under a number of banners but the largest ones were of a wolf's head, a stag, a jumping fish and the familiar golden lion.

 _The army that took the city._ She surmised, eyes scanning the long column she had heard even from their camp. _They may be marching to relieve the siege_.

It was certainly frustrating, knowing so little about the land she was now in, though Rhaenys' storytelling proved unexpectedly helpful in that regard. Still, stories and fairy tales were not enough for her to calculate the actions of their enemies.

She kept still in that position for a long time, body hidden by the roots of the trees and a small dip in the ground. Banners and men passed and behind them more banners and more men and all the supplies to keep them going.

 _Maybe thirty thousand, likely more._

In a way the thumping beat of ten thousands of feet marching was nearly soothing if not for the fact that they were all hostile.

 _They are not attentive. Confident, superbly so. But tired. An army that feels itself near wars end._

She knew soldiers, she was one and had been for nearly all her life. The army was the order on which she ground herself against the chaos of war and battle. It was her life. Given time she could tell an army's mood, what its heart was, what made it move forward or backwards and who its soldiers were.

This army was a motley mix but the majority she could tell were bloodied, if not full on veterans. It was in the way they marched, with a casual ease that spoke of how they had been doing this for some time now. It was in how their equipment was maintained, cleaned but clearly had seen action. In how they listened to their officers in acquiescence, in how they spoke casually with one another and joked and bantered to get their mind off things.

This was an army that followed and looked to its leaders and that was how it was held together, more than by its own self-discipline and cohesion.

It was somewhat comforting, how familiar that was.

 _A different world, the same people._

The sun had dipped low in the sky casting an orange hue when Ash saw the last of the rearguard go past and when they were gone she breathed a sigh of relief, finally taking a moment to relax and stretch out her numb limbs.

Then it started to rain.

She cursed and headed back to camp.

Nothing much had changed when she returned, which she was thankful for.

"Lady Ash!" A silver haired missile flew into her stomach and small arms wrapped around her waist as Rhaenys hugged her tight.

"You were gone for so long! I was really worried!"

Ash was dumbstruck for a moment, unable to process the what's and why's but she quickly shook her head and brushed her thoughts aside and took Rhaenys back to the sheltered part of their camp.

"I was observing an army Rhaenys" she told the girl who gasped.

"An army?!"

Ash began the process of removing her armour and wiping them dry while handing a dry piece of cloth to Rhaenys as well.

"Dont worry, they didnt see me and they have gone now"

Rhaenys nodded though she still looked a little concerned. Ash tried to smile at her and going by the small grin that made its way on the little girl's face it was good enough.

Ash re-lit the fire, putting it closer to their covered area and made sure it would not be put out by the rain. She moved the still bound she-wolf under the shelters, after cleaning out its eye and making sure its claws weren't pointing in their direction then carefully fed it, nearly losing a finger in the process.

Baby Aegon wasn't very happy as Ash had forbidden Rhaenys from going near the animal so he had not had a "filling" meal, instead having to make do with more boiled water. However, once he latched onto the she-wolf's nipple his complaints died down. Rhaenys meanwhile continued to care for her mother as best she could, cleaning and giving her water but Elia did not yet show signs of recovery. Rather, she seemed to be in the throes of a bad dream.

As she watched the daughter take care of the mother, hands holding a fed and happy Aegon and encouraging him to go to sleep, Ash thought on the concoction she had fed the Dornishwoman.

" _Its medicine, of a sort" Mercy told her as the Peacekeeper handed her a vial._

 _Ash raised a brow "Of a sort?"_

 _Mercy shrugged "Made it out of plants and flowers from the Myre and mushrooms from the North"_

" _What does it do?"_

" _Well" the woman put a finger to her lips "It should have some regenerative qualities and a body cleanser, so perfect for wounds...But"_

" _But?"_

" _It may also be a hallucinogenic. I think it's the same mushrooms the Berserkers use"_

 _The Warden looked at the vial, then back at Mercy "...Why did you make such a thing?"_

 _The Peacekeeper chuckled, patting her cheek "I thought it would be perfect for you. Should help you take your mind of things when you fight"_

 _Realisation slowly dawned on her "Oh" she looked at the vial once more before pocketing it "Thank you"_

 _Mercy gave her a tired smile then donned her hood and mask "Chin up"_

She watched as Elia moved in fits in her sleep, fine brows furrowed and body shaking.

She watched, for she could do no more.

* * *

 _She laughed but she did not feel the humour. Faceless all around her, amorphous and changing as the wind bid them._

 _She yearned for the outside, to the place beyond the Red Walls where she knew,_ she knew, _she was loved and welcomed and where laughter was shared._

 _But she was here. Why?_

 _Duty. Love._

 _So long ago she came her for duty, to love. She had given both, so much of both but still she was here._

 _It was so long ago now._

 _Loyalty bid her to stay. It was not a shared quality. Once, it might have been. Once, it would have been. Now it was not._

 _Had she not given enough?_

 _What more could she give?_

 _The grey faces moved around her, indiscernible. They saw her when they wanted to see her. She tried reaching out for them once but they melded back into the grey soon enough._

 _Then the fire. The horrifying, eternal fire and the mad, mad cackling of the flames._

 _She didn't know how long she was there in the place behind the Red Walls. It was a lonely place. Loneliness hurt more than the flames._

 _The fire held no warmth, it never did. But loneliness, it was where there was once warmth but it was gone. It was a cruel thing._

 _She was of the sun but hers was a dim light._

 _Two stars. Two warm, lovely, beautiful stars by her side. She shared her light with them and they nearly took it all._

 _She did not regret it._

 _Her stars._

 _They dimmed. Green fire surrounded them._

 _She screamed._

Elia startled awake, near blinded by a flash of the sun. She was shaking and was no numb she couldn't even feel the aches that were there.

"Mother!"

Something warm and soft covered her and she felt a weight on her chest.

"Rhae..nys" Her throat felt rough and her voice was hoarse but she was glad, so so glad that her little star was shining bright.

The little girl buried herself by her side and Elia would have laughed if she could. Instead she settled for gently, weakly, stroking her precious daughter's hair and breathing her scent. It was real, this was real.

Looking up, she blinked.

"Lady Ash, why is my baby feeding on a wolf?"

* * *

It had taken another day for Elia to fully recover. Ash had kep busy cleaning, packing and making new equipment from the scavenged materials they had as well as caring for the children, the horse and the she-wolf. The latter of which realised struggling would only prolong the time between feeding. Ash still kept her bound though.

Elia found it entirely too strange that her baby survived off of wolf's milk but resolved to accept it.

It was as they were packing and clearing out their camp that Ash heard the tell-tale signs of an army on the march. Birds had scattered a distance away and animals moved away from the road and went deeper into the forest. Elia and Rhaenys hardly noticed but they did grow concerned when she stilled and hushed them.

A moment of silence passed, the two looking at her in curiosity.

"What is it?" Elia eventually broke the silence.

"A large body of soldiers are moving"

The Princess stiffened for a moment before taking a breath, resolve in her eyes. "What should we do?"

"Finish packing as quick as you can, I will watch them. They may take a while to pass so" Ash looked up at the canopy, trying to see where the sun was "Hm, past midday. If I am not back when the sky turns orange do not come looking for me-"

Elia bit her lip "No"

Ash continued "-and head south, where the camp entrance points towards. You should reach a large fallen tree. Follow along it to its tip, leads west back into the road behind the army"

"No!" She did not shout but Elia's voice was firm. "No, I will not abandon you" She stood straight and regal, addressing Ash as a commander and the Warden couldn't help but straighten her spine "Lady Ash of Ashfeld. You will scout ahead. You will see under whose banners this army marches and you will return to me

The Warden looked at her, forest green meeting chestnut brown and slowly, reluctantly nodded. "Very well. I will return"

Elia nodded, smiling "Make sure that you do, Lady Ash. You yet still have wards to protect"

Ash paused, staring at the Dornishwoman but eventually a small grin made its way to her scarred lips and she nodded.

* * *

When Ash returned Elia breathed a sigh of relief and she saw Rhaenys do the same before the little girl rushed off to embrace the Knight.

 _Well, they certainly have gotten close._

She was glad for that as she still remembered the dead look in her daughter's eyes after the incident in the bedroom. To learn from Rhaenys of her little girl telling fantasies and fairy tales to the Warden was a welcome thing as she saw how genuinely happy and _alive_ her daughter was.

Disentangling herself from Rhaenys Ash approached her, opening her visor and began to report on the banners that she had seen. As each was listed off Elia grit her teeth further and frustration bubbled. The Direwolf of House Stark, the Stag of Baratheon, the Tully trout, the Lannister lion and worst of all, the flower of the Tyrell's.

The Princess felt drained and she had to sit in case her legs gave out under her. Ash sat by her side, a pillar of steel and strength and Rhaenys sat on on her other side wrapping her arms around her. She hugged Aegon closer to her breast, starting to stroke his head.

"How..how..?"

Ash shrugged at her "I saw the first four a few days earlier. I assumed they were on their way to relieve the siege. It seems that have done so?"

Elia groaned into her hands even as she nodded "It is over. The war is done and...and I have lost. Dorne lost her army at the Trident. There is none that will fight him any longer. Robert Baratheon has won"

She looked up at the canopy, through it, into the sky. It was a cloudy one promising rain soon but here and there shafts of orange light broke through the grey.

Ash's face came into view. "What do we do?"

Elia looked at her, at her scars, at her eyes. A shaft of light shone above the Warden's head.

The Dornishwoman closed her eyes, drew a breath, then exhaled.

"To Dorne. To Sunspear. To home"

Opening her eyes she saw Ash's gauntleted hand in front of her "Then let's go"

Rhaenys had already stood, hand holding Ash's other arm with a wide smile on her face. "Yay! Dorne!"

Elia laughed and took the offered hand, letting herself be pulled up.

* * *

Ned did not know what to expect when he met with Mace Tyrell but a pudgy and oafish man who was entirely too fond of singing was not an option he considered.

 _Still, at least he surrendered. Robert has his victory._

Ned felt empty though. The reason for his involvement still remained missing. Mace had admitted to hearing about Rhaegar traveling through the Reach, one cannot miss a Prince after all, especially a Targaryen one. That meant only one possible Kingdom where Lyanna was being held.

He thought about bringing his host south but immediately thought better of it. His men had been marching for months on end and Dorne no longer had an army it could field, at least one that would threaten the new King. there was no justification for an army to move southwards unless it was to invade and he had no intention of doing that.

 _Let the men rest, they've earnt it all._

In the end he'd hand picked a few chosen men to accompany him. Howland Reed who insisted on coming, citing his desire to repay Lyanna for her defence of him at Harrenhall. Lord Willam Dustin, a fine warrior with a mighty red steed. Ethan Glover who sought vengeance for his father and his own imprisonment. The ever faithful and loyal Martyn Cassel. The mighty Theo Wull of the Mountain Clans of the North and finally Ser Mark Ryswell. Kind, loyal and skilled. One of the few Knights of the North. All good names, all good and strong men. He would need them. The Lord of Winterfell had no illusions about who he would be fighting when the last three of Aerys' Kingsguard weren't at King's Landing.

He looked up at the sky that promised rain, then behind him where tired, dirty but happy men were marching home. Looking ahead he could see the fork in the road. North, to Kings Landing and beyond. South, to Highgarden and onwards, to sandy Dorne.

Ned took a breath, whispering a prayer to the Old Gods.

 _Please, keep Lyanna safe. Just a little longer sister, just a little longer._


	4. Chapter 4-Detour

A/N:

As always, thank you all for your reviews, favourites and follows! They are all very much appreciated.

I've finished the For Honor campaign (just a few observables to gather up now). It was a fun but mostly frustrating towards the end since I dont really play Orochi that much and it was realistic. But it did give me a good handle on Apollyon's mentality, which is nothing short of insanity.

She's still bet Waifu, but, yeah. She's utterly insane.

* * *

Before they set to travel from what had basically become their home for however many days, or maybe even a week Ash wasn't sure, they had to deal with the issue of the she-wolf. It had become rather compliant, had not drawn its claws or barred its teeth but still watched them, Ash in particular, with its one eye with suspicion all the same. Rhaenys had grown fond of the beast and while Elia was wary around it, the Princess would forever bear the scars of the initial wolf attack after all, she couldn't in good conscience slaughter it as it was so in the end it was decided to let it free.

The Warden carried it a distance away from the camp, gently laid it down and mounted it, then began untying its bonds. The she-wolf, remarkably calm while being hauled around, started to stir in interest once her front paws were freed. One by one Ash undid her ties until the wolf was unbound, though still pinned. For a moment the she-wolf didn't move seemingly surprised by the new development. Then it tried to move its limbs, testing out the injured paw first. It still seemed quite weak but she could put weight on it now and others worked fine. Oddly, to Ash at least, the she-wolf didnt make a move to struggle or get out from under her so she slowly lifted off of the animal and backed off.

The she-wolf stood up slowly, warily watching her still. The Warden reciprocated the gesture, then slowly began to walk backwards until eventually turning her back and walking away.

"Is it free?" Elia asked her when she got back to the camp and Ash nodded in reply. Rhaenys seemed a little put out going by the pout she had, the little girl wanted to have a new pet since her Balerion had scampered off when she fell off the horse and had not returned.

The Warden patted the little girl's hood covered head which seemed to make her feel better.

"To Dorne?" Ash asked the Princess as she and her children mounted their only horse, Ash taking the reins to lead it out.

Elia nodded "We must go through the Reach but avoid using the Roseroad as much as we can. The Tyrells were always ardent Targaryen supporters but we have lost the war and I do not want the risk of being caught and handed back as a show of loyalty"

Ash noticed how the Princess brought Rhaenys closer to her at that statement but only nodded in reply.

"So, we shall take the Roseroad south-west until we break free of the Kingswood, then we go south to the Dornish Marches and make for the Boneway. The river Blueburn will stand in our way so we must cross that first"

Ash had nary a clue as to where these places were nor how to get to them but she nodded anyway, not like she was going anywhere else.

* * *

Tywin Lannister was not a happy man.

Not that he was at all joyful at any moment in time but this time in particular, sitting behind the desk within his personal command tent outside the city his men had just sacked, he felt more than the usual amount of anger and frustration.

His plan to present to the now King Robert the bodies of the wife and children of the Prince-no-longer had failed. Quite badly at that. Clegane and Lorch were dead and Arryn was the one to poke around their scene of demise. With Clegane's infamous reputation as a mountain of a man and the fact he was not seen amongst the soldiers from the Westerlands his rather inconvenient corpse would soon be identified. Not that his or Lorch's death bothered Tywin. No, what bothered him far more was the fact that, according to Pycelle and his own men, the Princess Elia nor her children were seen amongst the many dead and there were only two corpses in the burnt out ruins of the Royal Chambers.

Somehow, someway they had escaped and killed the Mountain and Lorch while doing so. He suspected the hand of Varys acting, the perfumed Spider ever being a Targaryen loyalist even to the Mad King. Not that Tywin was surprised at that, Aerys after all had been the man to raise Varys up from his otherwise lowborn occupation.

Nonetheless it left him a problem, namely that without the bodies to present as an act of loyalty he needed to find an alternative way to show his support to the new regime. He was under no illusions as to what the other oh so noble lords were thinking of him and his house.

 _Sacking King's Landing. Jaime killing the King. We are not seen as roaring lions but carrion feasting vultures, pecking at a corpse that was all but slain at the Trident._

The fact that his men endured more casualties that he assumed sacking a near defenceless city was just icing on a bitter cake. Either the ragged defenders put up more of a fight or whoever had aided Elia had also carved through his men. Frustratingly without leaving one of their own corpses behind to identify them.

It was not a good situation. Still, the Lion had more than a soft paw with which to handle its rivals.

* * *

Elia was not as confident as Ash seemed to believe her to be when choosing their destination and path of travel. In truth she had never made an overland journey from Dorne to the King's Landing, instead preferring the speedier ship journey. However she did spend much time learning from what books she could get her hands on, and read through, as well as listening to more well travelled peoples. Lessons on geography with old Maester Lawrance also helped. Still, this assortment of information only gave her a rough idea of where they should go and how to get there.

Not that that bothered their ever sturdy Warden who marched on in full, though battered, armour and had never once taken a ride. Secretly she was thankful for that but that didn't stop the guilt, a guilt only slightly assuaged by their midday breaks to take some shelter and let her rest for a bit.

Still, the woman was injured and some of those scars ran deep enough to cut into bone, the Warden had admitted herself. If stories from the Kingsguard were to be believed such injuries were crippling at the best of times and wondrous if it didn't leave one lamed.

Ash seemed to contradict such statements though for she moved as if unhindered by her extensive injuries.

Once they made camp that afternoon, near an opportune spring, Elia resolved to at least be somewhat helpful to their Warden. After putting down their bedrolls of stitched together fur, leather and what had once been clothing, Elia saw the Warden about to remove her armour. Placing Aegon on her bedroll she checked to see if he was still taking his afternoon nap before turning to the Warden.

"Lady Ash" she said as she approached the woman "Come, let me help you with that"

The Lady Knight gave her a quizzical look as she removed her helmet "I'm alright-"

Elia brushed her hands away, like she would sometimes do to Rhaenys when the little girl was fussing about something "Oh don't fuss, I helped my brother when he was trying on armour" she smiled as the memory came to her "Don't tell him this but the first time he tried on plate the helmet was so large he could barely see out of the visor. Ended up tripping over and giving him a big bruise on his nose"

Seeing as Ash didn't put up further resistance Elia started running her delicate fingers over the thick leather straps and bronze buckles, beginning to undo them and removing the pieces of armour. As each piece of plate fell away they revealed a coat of chainmail which she helped lift off of Ash.

"I would make for a lousy squire no?" She joked once the coat of mail came off. She was surprised at its weight and had nearly dropped it.

"Squire?"

Elia raised a brow "Surely you had squires do this for you once upon a time?"

Ash seemed to ponder the question as she got a fire started. Nearby Rhaenys was feeding the horse clumps of grass she had uprooted as it drank from the spring.

"Ah. Squiring . It was an old practice in Ashfeld. No one did it when I...became a Knight"

There was a hesitation there that Elia did not fail to notice but she pressed with her line questioning, curiosity now peaked. "That is most interesting, why was that the case?"

"Only the Nobles performed the practice"

Elia sat down on her bedroll, taking Aegon and cradling him in her arms "Are you not a Noble?"

Ash shook her head "No, all nobility died before I was born"

 _What?_ "What?"

"All nobility died before I was born" the Warden repeated.

Elia rubbed her temples as she tried to think about that statement. As the fire blazed and Ash began unpacking their food, Rhaenys joining them with a slobbered hand, Elia still could not discern the words. It was no code, no flower language, no hidden meanings behind it. It was simply a statement of fact. Elia prided herself on her ability to discern the nature of people and the truth of their words. It was a skill that she learned and honed, a skill that was sharpened and very necessary during her time in the Red Keep. This skill told her that Ash was telling the truth.

 _Meaning either she's mad, and I will not insult her so by relating her to the Mad King, or she is telling what she believes to be true. Which is...a difficult thing to imagine, a world without nobility._

Ash let out an 'oof' as Rhaenys plopped herself down on the Warden's lap. Elia giggled at Ash' expression as the little girl started eating the strips of jerky they had. She looked so surprised.

 _Mystery surrounds you like thick fog Lady Ash and yet you have risked life and limb for me and mine._

"Lady Ash, what's your home like? I told you ALL about the Red Keep so you have to tell me about Ashfeld!" Rhaenys made it clear she expected a tale.

Elia made herself comfortable, putting her mind to listening to Ash rather than the bland tasting jerky.

"Ashfeld is…" The Warden looked at the fire in thought "...a hard place. The rivers and streams are mostly poisonous, drinking from them will me-" She looked at Rhaenys' wide, expectant eyes "mean bad things will happen. There are only a few sources of clean water. The land is mountainous and hilly where only a few plateaus and valleys can grow crops. To the west are the Scrublands and further west the desert of Austrus, to the North the mountains of Valkenheim where it snows for most months of the year and to the east the marshland that's called the Myre. In the middle of it all is the great mountain of fire, Ignis, that billows smoke and causes ash to rain from the sky. Rivers of fire come from it, though it is not the only mountain of fire in the land"

Rhaenys seemed absorbed by the description despite the matter-of-fact way Ash had said it, as if she was reading out a list. Elia tried to fit that description to anything she might have heard or read about and the only thing that would even be remotely possible was the Smoking Sea! Though even that was a stretch for the names were entirely unfamiliar.

"That sounds amazing! But it must be so hard to live in!" Rhaenys beamed up at the Warden.

A smile crept up on Ash' face at the girl but soon her eyes averted to the fire and the smile vanished "It is difficult, but we…survive"

Elia sensed the reluctance and intervened before Rhaenys could get clued in, the girl was very good at her age for noticing expressions and Ash was an open book most of the time "Fascinating, where in Planetos is this place? I have not heard of such names in either Westeros or Essos"

Ash furrowed her brows in confusion "Planetos? Westeros? Essos?"

"You do not know? The latter two are the names for the greater masses of land in this world, though there are also Sothoryos and the Summer Isles. Planetos is the name for all of the world"

The Warden shook her head, Rhaenys looking between the two of them curiously, half chewn jerky hanging out of her mouth. "We, at least, the Knights call our world Nova Terra. The Vikings call it Niflheim, I think. The Samurai...I do not know, I don't speak Japanese"

Elia sighed, starting to stroke Aegon's head and his small tuft of silver-blonde hair. "I...have never heard of such names or peoples"

"Oh! Oh!" Rhaenys bounced, swallowing her jerky "It could be that Lady Ash comes from a magical world! Like how faeries have their own world in the mushroom rings and the Children of the Forest have their world in the trees and how mermaids live deep deep in the sea!"

Elia couldn't help but laugh "Oh my dear-"

"It could be like that" Ash said to the girl.

Elia paused, not so much at Ash's words, though they certainly helped, but at the way she said them. That same matter-of-fact tone she used when she was saying something Elia thought was mad. "Lady Ash, you cannot possibly mean that you come from a...magical realm? That would be a little...fanciful no?"

The Warden shrugged "I learned that, a long, long time ago, perhaps, as far back as your Dawn Age is to you, we lived on a different world altogether. But then God had cast judgement upon Men and we were found wanting, so we were uprooted and planted upon Ashfeld to prove our faith. At least, that was supposedly the stories the priests once told. They are…" she looked at Rhaenys "...gone now. But the remains of the Uprooting still scar the land if you look close enough, apparently. Although the Great Cataclysm that reshaped the world near wiped out all traces of it"

The Princess could only stare while Rhaenys seemed amazed, then slightly indignant, pointing a wet finger at Ash "But you said you don't remember any stories!"

Ash was, again, showing surprise on her face at the action "I dont, no. These are…" she averted her eyes to the fire "...lessons I remember". If Elia wasn't still trying to get over Ash's story she would have noticed the strained way the Warden spoke of her 'lessons'.

Rhaenys did note it though "Oh, you didn't like your lessons? Well sometimes Septa Loraine could be so _boring_ when she was teaching me about the Seven but maybe that was because it was the Seven and not her because when she was talking about History it was _really_ interesting"

And on and on Rhaenys went about her lessons, quickly moving to her favourite topic, then moving onto more stories and histories and lore and Elia thanked the gods for a daughter that could talk a bard into silence. The discomfort on Ash' face melted into confusion then resignation and then some amusement as the little girl went on and on, apparently thinking breathing an optional course of action.

Elia sighed, smiling at the scene and Aegon decided it was time to wake up and be fed.

 _For all that you have done_ Elia thought as she watched her daughter entertain their Warden as she fed her son. _I will try and accept your truths as my own._

* * *

Ash felt it was inevitable, given the circumstances of the land. An army marshalled away would attract the bandits to the highways and the farms, the places where they wouldn't have gone near to if they expected someone to come after them. An Army returning home would send them away from those places, back into their hideouts away from civilization.

Right into them, who were also doing their best to avoid civilization.

The first meeting had been an accident, both of their groups drawn to the same water source at the same time of day.

They were each surprised.

Ash was faster in recovering.

They had a new horse after that.

The next encounter was more planned. Ash spotted the tracks, followed it to the mouth of a cave, estimated the number, scanned the grounds and then ambushed a group that had raided on their way there.

They set free a grateful merchant and his family who, upon being questioned by a hooded Elia, told them of a way to ford the Blueburn, some leagues west of Grassy Vale and just south-east of Bitterbridge.

The third encounter came when they were avoiding a farming village, then a fourth, then a fifth and more after. Each one Ash scattered to the winds though not without paying a price.

"This is ridiculous!" Elia grumbled in frustrated exasperation once they made another camp, cleaning a wound Ash had received from a well directed spear thrust that slipped between the plate on her side and pierced the chainmail underneath. "To have so many brigands and bandits freely marauding, these Reach Lords have lost all sense of duty!"

Ash made a hum of surprise at that "Is this not normal?"

Elia gave her a baffled look, then shook her head and went to stitch the wound closed. "No, it is most definitely not normal. Or not supposed to be this way. Such banditry is outlawed and should have been severely punished"

There was a moment of quiet after that. Elia, with baby Aegon swaddled to her, busy stitching and Ash watching Rhaenys play with the horses. "It is normal in Ashfeld" Ash blurted out.

Elia paused stitching "Oh?"

 _Why say that?_

The Warden nodded, continuing on "Since there are not that many sources of clean water or farmable land they are fought over. Since Ashfeld is mountainous the passes and valleys are also fought over. Anything important will be fought over"

Elia was silent. Ash kept her eyes on Rhaenys, fingers drumming the grass.

Then the stitching was finished and a gentle finger ran down the seam "In this land" Elia began "In Westeros, at least south of the Neck, we worship the Seven Who Are One. Seven aspects of the same God. The first is the Father who represents Justice, then comes the Mother who represents Mercy and Motherhood, the Maiden who represents Innocence, the Crone Wisdom, the Warrior Strength, the Smith Creation…"

Ash looked at Elia when she paused "The seventh?"

"...The Stranger, who represents Death and the Unknown"

The Warden did not know what to say to that. The drumming stopped.

"When I was trapped in that room" Elia continued, voice soft and low, eyes locked onto her own, hand gently covering what would be her new scar "I prayed to the Seven. I called on on them, from the Father to the Stranger. Do you know who answered while the rest were silent?"

Ash shook her head.

"The Stranger. I prayed for death. Death of those vile men. A quick death so my daughter does not suffer. Death for myself so I do not have to see my children die. Then you came, swinging your sword and cutting off that bastard's head"

Elia took Ash' hands in hers. The Princess' frail, thin fingers over her own larger, scarred and rougher ones.

"I can never thank you enough for that and for all the things you have done and continue to do. There can be no reward that I can give on this world to equal the lives of my children. My gratitude shall always be yours and so is that of my House and my people. So, when you say you come from a place of such violence, of such war and death, a place unknown to us, I will accept you and welcome you" She laughed then "Look at me, welcoming the Stranger's avatar. But you are not a deathly spirit, no, you are flesh and blood as I am"

"I...Thank you?"

This was not an expected development so Ash was left unsure how to proceed. Elia seemed to know how she felt for she let go and sat back with a laugh "I don't know if I am even making sense Lady Ash. I apologise if I offended you"

Ash shook her head

"I just do not know what to think when you speak about your home and I know so little about who you are, so I will do something that I have been advised not to do: be entirely honest. You yourself seem to show little shock at finding yourself in Westeros"

Ash shrugged, rubbing her fingers at the trace warmth that Elia's had left "It has happened, so I move on"

Another chuckle "So you move on. Well, I will continue to trust in you as I have done so, Stranger-sent or not" Elia patted her shoulder "So, tell me about yourself my Lady, tell me who is this Lady Ash of Ashfeld that sits before me?"

It was slow at first, but eventually Ash opened up and spoke to the Dornishwoman and Rhaenys when the latter was done playing with the horses. She told them of things she had never told anyone before, of her little wonders and curiosities and in turn they answered her questions and told her of themselves, not that Rhaenys had not already done so but she welcomed another chance to do so again nonetheless. They passed the night in pleasant conversation until finally they needed to sleep.

As she was looking upon foreign stars later that night Ash could not help but think.

 _This is a new land. New people. A new chance._

Ash thought back to her life in Ashfeld, where the black raven dragged her along with bloodied talons, where she couldn't speak her own words, where she loathed living and yet feared to die, where those she wanted to call dear friends had to be distant, out of the reach of a blade. Or dead already. She shook her head.

 _No, no more._

 _You will always be a wolf_ that black voice told her suddenly.

 _NO!_ Fear gripped her heart.

 _Deny all you wish, but I made you. You are my wolf. My Harbinger of a new age._

Ash grit her teeth and tried to will the voice away. Her body started shaking, hands closing to tight fists as imaginary steel talons dug into her shoulders and the smell of old, dried blood and rusted iron filled her nose.

Then she heard Elia sneeze and she jumped, turning a concerned look at her ward. For warmth, they slept close to one another so Ash could see the woman's face clearly. Carefully, she shifted closer so she could warm the woman better.

She relaxed as she felt the steady breathing on her shoulder. She lay awake for a while, calming and letting herself unwind. Eventually she closed her eyes and slowly drifted off into a sound, dreamless sleep.

* * *

It was a few days later that they reached the Blueburn, where they were to ford the river according to the merchant. While the Blueburn wasn't a roaring tide it was still deep enough and the current strong enough to carry Rhaenys, Elia and Aegon away if they didn't have the strength of the horse carrying them. Seeking to take no chances Ash had tied their horses together and lead the way, focusing on keeping straight and narrow and checking behind to ensure her wards were following.

Which was when the arrows started flying.

They bounced off of her armour like pebbles to a boulder but her horse and more importantly her wards were not so armoured.

Arrows embedded themselves on her horse which, understandably, started to panick and there was no amount of reigning in Ash could do to make it listen to her and not its instincts of self-preservation. Her horse bolted the only way it could; forwards into the enemy arrows and dragging Elia and her children along with it.

Ash heard the cries behind her but couldn't turn back to look for ahead of her a number of spearmen charged. Two spears impaled her horse, the animal dying a bloody death so she dismounted quickly, parrying approaching spears with a quickness borne of an age of experience and tinged with a level of panic.

Two spear thrusts were deflected, another had its spearhead cut off and one man was overeager and overextended with a charging thrust which ended with him impaled through Ash's greatsword.

The Warden discarded the body and would have gone in to attack the rest of the group had it not been for Elia's horse barreling into her from behind sending her stumbling.

She used her sword as a crutch to right herself but that moment of delay allowed the spearmen to widen the distance between them and take advantage of their weapons' reach, and their numbers, by forming a loose spear wall intent to keep her at bay as they stabbed at her.

Ash couldn't have cared less.

"TE SECABO!"

The battle cry leapt out of her mouth as she dived, rolled underneath the spears and came up sword first, skewering a man through the underside of his chin. Then she punched the man to her right, stepped into the space he vacated and pulled her sword out of the head it was in to impale it through the face of another spearman.

Their formation ruined the spearmen broke apart into small groups or on their own, a fact which Ash took ruthless advantage of.

Her sword cleaved through the shield of a spearman with a mighty blow splintering the wood and cutting a gash so deep across the man's chest it opened up his ribs and heart for all to see.

A spear was thrust to the back of her knee. It punched through the chain sending her lurching forward but she could ignored the pain, turning to cut the offending spear in half and taking the spearman's hands along with it. His screams were cut short by three feet of steel plunged into his lungs.

Withdrawing her blade she bisected a spearman's head and in quick succession parried a spear thrust and killed the man behind it. She followed up, lunging to a spearman who was backing away and disemboweling the man.

"ASH!"

The Warden turned to the scream and saw Elia, with bloody hands, struggling against an archer with a dagger. Behind her Rhaenys was holding onto Aegon while she kicked and thrashed against a man trying to pick her up. Their horse was dead, shot down near them.

She _flew_ across the distance and cut the man attacking Elia in half from shoulder to hip.

Even as the top half of the body slid to the floor Ash was on the man trying to take the children, grabbing his face and plunging two fingers into his eye. With an angry roar accompanied by a squeal of pain she threw the man on the ground and stomped on his head, twice for good measure. She turned to Rhaenys to check her state but her heart stopped when she saw the blood on the girl's horrified face.

"RAAAAA!"

Fury coursed through her veins as she flew into a rage. Gone was any grace as she swung in large, heavy arcs, chopping off limbs and bodies alike and ending men with one crushing blow after another.

"NULLA MISERICORDIA!"

Whether their ambushers understood her or not Ash hardly cared as she killed, killed and killed some more.

She loped off an arm holding a dagger, then the head. A spear bounced off her pauldron and she grabbed it, pulled the spearman close, snapped the spear and plunged it into his eye. Two arrows bounced off of her helmet leaving dents but doing little else. She looked to where the archers were and bounded over to them while they scrambled to pull out their knives. One never got the chance as he was cut in two by his waist and the other gave up on his knife and just ran.

An axeman, large and broad shouldered with arms as thick as logs and wearing a coat of chainmail charged at her bellowing in rage. She bent and shoulder barged him on his chest doubling him over before he could swing. She pulled back, swung her blade and cut him across the jaw.

He roared in pain but pressed on, swinging his axe in wide but controlled arcs. He clearly knew how wield his weapon.

 _Raider_ she mentally noted.

She blocked a swing, holding her sword up with two hands. She cast aside the axe exposing the man and went in with a pommel strike to his sternum, driving the breath out of his lungs. She brought her sword back holding the handle with both hands and going in for an overhead swing that missed his head but bit deep into his collar breaking through chain and padding and flesh. The Warden pulled down as she backed up, sawing the cut while avoiding a swing from his axe.

"YOU ARE DEAD!" He bellowed, bleeding face red with rage and blood as he swung a mighty blow to her left side.

Ash shifted to block and deflect it.

It was a feint.

He drove the butt end of the axe into her face and her ears rang with more than the clang of steel.

She backed away, gaining space as she fended off two more swings but she misjudged the third blow, and it was a strong one.

She yelled as the axehead broke through her left pauldron, split the mail and cut into flesh. She kicked him away to gain a reprieve and he took the chance to take a breather.

They circled each other for what felt like an eternity before Ash made the next move, a series of probing hits which were easily blocked or avoided but it hid her true intentions as she inched closer and closer. When he next blocked a swing she made her move. She lunged close, half an arm's length away and buried her crossguard into a rib, then quickly into his injured jaw before pulling back and thrusting her pomel into his groin with both hands on her blade.

The crunch was audible.

The axeman dropped to his knees.

Still holding her sword in a reverse grip she held near the tip then swung a mighty overhead blow, crossguard striking the man on his temple with a skull breaking crack.

She finished by decapitating him.

 _Rhaenys. Elia. Aegon._

The thought of her wards, people who she was meant to be protecting, brought reason to her rage and she ran back towards them.

* * *

Elia looked up from hugging her children tight as she heard Ash approach, armour clanking and rustling.

"Are they gone?" She asked.

The Warden looked around then nodded "For now. We need to leave this area"

Elia bit her lip, screaming at herself in frustration. _Fool! Idiot! You should have gone back to the Roseroad once we saw the first bandit!_

She heard the rustle of armour beside her. Ash had crouched next to her, visor up, looking at Rhaenys and Aegon with a concerned expression "Are they injured?"

She shook her head "No, thank the gods"

Ash nodded, relief palpable. Then she carefully took hold of her arm "You are"

Elia let the Warden tend to her wounds on her hand, trying her best to soothe her children in the meanwhile.

 _They have seen too much, been through too much._

Not for the first time Elia cursed her now dead husband, and Robert Baratheon, and Aerys.

 _Fuck them all to the Seven Hells!_

Her anger was the only thing keeping the exhaustion at bay so she worked to feed it but she could only muster so much before leaving herself more tired that she already was. Rhaenys clung to her shirt, the ill fitting dress having been turned into something else a while ago. Her poor little girl was shaking and trying to soothe her by running her fingers through the girl's hair like she usually loved wasn't doing anything, she was just too shocked.

 _No, not again. Please my love, do not be silent._

Aegon hadn't stopped crying either, bawling his little lungs out as he fussed about in his swaddle. Thankfully Rhaenys hadn't let go of him, in fact she seemed to keep a very tight grip on the baby.

Once Ash finished cleaning and bandaging her hand, the injury the result of a foolish attempt to grab hold of her attacker's knife, she gently coaxed Rhaenys to loosen her hold on Aegon which the little girl did so with some reluctance.

"You are so brave my princess, so so brave"

Those beautiful purple eyes turned to her, wide open and frightened.

"Shhh" she kept her voice soft, soothing, gently running her knuckles down her daughter's cheek "You were so fierce my little dragon, so fierce when you defended your brother. I am so proud of you"

Slowly she drew her into a hug with Aegon sandwiched between them, though not constricting, and began singing as she rocked them back and forth gently.

" _Gentle mother, font of mercy…"_

Rhaenys started crying, gripping her tighter.

* * *

It was decided that they should go back to the Roseroad so Ash carried them over the ford, Rhaenys and Aegon first and then Elia. Ash went back to scavenge as much as she could of their gear but with no horses they could only take back so much. They camped with one fur blanket that night, shared between Elia and the children.

The next day, with aching bones and healing wounds, they made their way to the Roseroad.

They ran into a party of well armed riders shortly afterwards.

* * *

A/N: I completely forgot about Balerion the Black Cat. Oops.

This chapter was longer than I expected and kinda achieved a different result than what I initially planned for it but I think it works out this way as well. I hope.

On a different note, while the For Honor storyline gives a good explanation as to why the factions are fighting and gives some good details on who they are, it doesn't give much explanation as to why such different cultures developed in the same land. At least for the Vikings and Knights. The Samurai can be excused because they "come from a land far to the east" and thus developed in isolation from the other two.

So I copped out and did the whole "transported from Earth to a different world" trope as an explanation and just added For Honor's lore on top.

Not like this is important to the overall story anyway but my inner Historian demanded an explanation, no matter how lazy.

Also, heres a translation for Ash' battlecries:

Te secabo! – "I'll cut you into pieces!"

Nulla misericordia! – "No mercy!"

Again, thank you for your reviews, favourites and follows!


	5. Chapter 5-Carrying On

A/N: Thank you guys again for the reviews, favourites and follows! They are well and truly apreciated. The story is up over a hundred followers now and nearing that in favourites, which is a great ego stroker I assure you, so thanks for that.

* * *

Ned could not help but be extremely suspicious of the three before him. One Knight in battered, dented and blood stained armour wielding a well worn and just as bloodstained greatsword that was as large as Ice. With him was a woman dressed in a motley of leathers that looked like they were stitched together from an array of different, mismatching pieces. Though she was wearing a hood that covered her face Ned assumed it was a woman from the small shoulders and the generally thin build as well as the black hair that flowed out of the hood. With them were two children, a baby in a swaddle held by the woman and a young child, also with a hood, that the Knight never let out of his hold.

It was entirely too coincidental for the Lord of Winterfell when he and his men encountered them on the Roseroad as the party of three near stumbled their way onto Bitterbridge. At first Ned gave them the benefit of the doubt and offered to escort them, an offer which they took with some reluctance. He thought it was wise caution from them at first but as they travelled their new companions were far too wary, to a point where even he could tell there was something more to them than met the eye. The Knight had been entirely silent, always looking to the woman whenever he was asked anything and only nodding or shaking his head in reply. The woman, 'Nymea', made great effort to speak as little as possible, keeping her head down and often kept her eye on the little girl who rode with the Knight on William Dustin's horse.

When they reached Bitterbridge and lodged themselves at the Inn often frequented by travellers using the bridge Howland Reed came to him with his suspicions, suspicions that Ned himself felt.

So, here they were, in a sequestered corner in the Inn that they took over after having rested for a few hours. Most of Ned's companions blocked their little corner off, standing guard and keeping anyone too curious from straying in while Howland and Martyn Cassel joined him on the table across from their new 'companions'.

There was an awkward silence, one that had lasted enough for a tenth of the candle on the table to melt, as Ned tried and failed to broach the issue without panicking them but in the end he gave up, breaking the silence with a loud sigh.

"Nymea" He said the name cautiously and still the woman did not look up from the table "I…" He stalled, mind failing to find words.

 _Gods dammit! This is getting us nowhere!_

"What my companion is trying to say, my Lady, is that there is no need for this deception. We give our word that no harm come to you, your children nor your companion"

 _Thank you Howland._

Ned nodded to the man "Yes, that is the right of it. I have no intention of harming you, my Lady. In fact I wish to help"

That got a twitch, but only because she snorted. "I 'aint no lady"

The attempt at a commoner's drawl only drew more attention to her highborn roots.

 _I need a different way to get around this problem._

"My Lady...Rhaegar is dead" That seemed to give her pause, though she quickly tried to hide how still she had become at those word "Aerys is dead. Rhaella and Viserys are on Dragonstone, isolated but for the Royal Fleet. Robert...King Robert has his eyes set on murdering all the Targaryens. Even now he intends to build a fleet to crush Dragonstone. Your children are not safe here in Westeros, not even in Dorne"

There was silence again after that and Ned felt another sigh coming on.

"I know"

It was faint, barely above a whisper but Ned caught it nonetheless. He nodded, hoping she carry on.

"I know very well my Lord what perill my children are in" There was venom in that voice, and honesty in the words. "So, pray tell whom so dains to offer me aid? Who are you 'heroes'? I can tell your Northern accents a league away. What are direwolves, the most loyal of the stag's followers, doing this far south hmm?"

The Knight shifted ever so slightly and Ned fought the urge to lay a hand on his weapon, Martyn and Howland looking to him out the corner of their eyes.

"I search for my sister. Rhaegar took her south, beyond the Reach"

The woman finally lifted her head from the table and in the light of the candle between them he could see the beautiful but tired and weary face of Princess Elia Martell. She drew her hood back and he could see her fully. She was pale and unhealthy, her sun kissed Dornish skin a greyish brown and it looked like rest had not come easy to her going by the prominent dark circles under her eyes.

"...Lord Stark?"

Ned nodded, trying to appear more relaxed than he felt. "Yes, my Lady"

She stared at him, chestnut brown eyes searching his own for...something.

"I know about your...brother. And your father. For what it is worth, I offer my condolences for them. You, however, I know little of. In Harrenhall, what seems like an age ago, I saw you dancing with Ashara Dayne but we did not have a chance to speak personally. I was however told you are a quiet one, that you take after your father in many regards"

Speaking about his dead brother and father still hurt, it had only been near a year since they were so harshly taken from this world and he felt their absence keenly. Ice still felt alien in his hands despite how much he used it.

"I know little about how others speak of me my Lady, I am simply here to seek the return of my sister and...to find you and speak to you"

"Well, you have me at your mercy. Speak away"

Ned considered his words for a moment "As you know, there will be no safe haven for your children, not even Dorne can protect you against the fury of an angry king and it would only lead to further death if they tried"

Elia grit her teeth, face twitching in a flash of anger.

"But it needs not be this way!" Ned was quick to try and placate her "All you need to do is officially renounce your childrens' claim to the throne and flee Westeros. Robert will have no reason to see them dead once he knows they are not a threat"

She let out a short, barking, laugh. "Of course" she wiped at her eyes "Of course" Then she began to chuckle again. "Of course, my Lord Stark, I will have to won't I? I will have to. I must also remarry, for being someone else's' wife would be preferable to being Rhaegar's widow. Of course I must also cease all contact with my family, for they will be in danger!"

Ned blinked, confused and slightly alarmed as Elia's chuckle turned to near maniacal laughter as she began to mutter to herself. He looked to his companions by his side but Martyn and Howland were also confused at this turn of behaviour.

"Ah...my Lady" He slowly reached out a hand towards her but stopped when the Knight flexed his grip on his sword.

Thankfully, it seemed her bout of hysteria had subsided but that left only a sad, crying mess.

"Oh, oh I do apologise Lord Stark" She said as she wiped her eyes, taking deep breaths to calm her shaking body "It has been...it has been a struggle. I hardly had time to mourn my fool of a husband before men were trying to kill me and my children"

When she made eye contact with him again he could see just how _tired_ she was, the utter exhaustion clear as day even in the light of the candle. It seemed as if some life had ebbed from her and from what he knew Elia Martell was a frail woman with poor health before all of this madness. How she escaped and survived the ordeals she had clearly suffered through was a mystery to him.

"Only by the grace of the Gods" Elia continued "and the strength of Ser Ashford was I able to escape with my children but even then there was no rest. Wolves, bandits, marauders. It's as if all law has broken down Lord Stark, there is chaos everywhere" She breathed a deep sigh and sagged in her seat, eyes watery. "I am tired, Lord Stark, so very tired of it all"

This time it was Ned who found he couldn't meet her gaze. _What a poor woman, she has done nothing to have this fall upon her._

He shook his head, steeling himself. He had a duty to accomplish, both for family and friend. "We were enemies that is true my Lady, but now my task is to find my sister and to see you safe and the only way I can achieve the latter is to see you boarding a ship bound for Essos and the only way I see to accomplish the former is to head to Dorne. Our paths cross one way or another and I insist you travel with us, it will be much safer for you and your children"

She appeared to be contemplating the offer, looking over her shoulder at the Knight, Ser Ashford, whose expression was hidden behind his helmet which Ned never saw him remove. They shared a moment of silent communication before she reached her conclusion, nodding at him once.

Ned felt relieved, he honestly did not know what he would have done had she not agreed. The thought of kidnapping her was an option he wanted to so desperately avoid but was nonetheless an open one.

"Which route will you take, Lord Stark?"

"We will follow the Roseroad to Oldtown and from there charter a ship. It is also a port that Essosi traders frequent so…" He let it hang at that.

She raised a brow "Lord Stark, I mean to speak to my family before I must leave. It would do nobody any good if they think I am dead. I know my brothers well and how they will react. Besides, I can hazard a guess as to where you shall go in Dorne and if I guessed rightly, I will be very useful to you there. She was my lady-in-waiting after all"

Ned was at a loss for words for a moment, amazed at her ability to deduce so much from so little. _Still, she makes a good point. I cannot deny her her family, but, to accompany us to Starfall…_

His reluctance must have shown for Elia was quick to make another point "Truth be told Lord Stark, I am also interested in Lyanna's fate. I assure you I bear no ill-will to her, I only seek to know what has become of her. Besides, as I said, I know Ashara Dayne _and_ her brother. He was conspicuous by his absence in King's Landing and last I heard was sent to fetch my dead husband but never returned with him"

The Lord of Winterfell searched Elia's eyes for any hint of deception, then turned to Howland and Martyn when he found none. Martyn nodded and eventually, and after a long and assessing look, Howland agreed as well.

"She speaks truly my Lord, she would be of great help to us since it is her land we journey towards and her people we mean to converse with" Howland said.

Ned nodded, trusting in his friend's words. "Very well my Lady. On the morrow we continue on. Please, eat your fill and rest some more, and rest easy. We will protect you now"

* * *

Ash slept in full armour that night, back against the door.

The Warden awoke early, before even the sun rose, though only just. On the double bed, one of the two that the Inn had and the only one that was free, were her wards fast asleep. Though comfort was something which she herself could do away with for a great length of time, it was not so for Elia and even less for her children. They had gorged themselves on food paid by their new 'companions' and, after the discussion with this Lord Stark, they near collapsed on the bed and fell asleep as their heads hit the pillows.

The discussion itself was an interesting spectacle. Elia, after having a meal and giving one to Aegon and making sure Rhaenys had some proper food in her too, told them to "stay quiet and still" before they headed to talk with Lord Stark. When Elia had sat down Ash immediately noticed the change in her demeanor, enough to grow concerned. Elia was...expressive in her supposed vulnerability and her body language worked to draw attention to her frailty which confused the Warden greatly. The woman had been a paragon of determination and endurance ever since Ash had come across her in that maze of a fortress, and though she had shed her tears and showed her pain she always, always moved forward and never gave up. The Elia that Ash saw in that discussion was the complete opposite of that, one tired of life and ready to submit.

As someone who survived the Trials of her old world by hiding her true self behind a layer of masks, she was truly concerned that this was the real Elia and all that she had seen before were but layers.

She was extremely relieved when the woman she knew returned, once back in their room away from the eyes of their companions but the whole experience shook her, reminded her that there were sheep in wolf's clothing in this world as well.

It was a topic she wanted to speak to Elia about. Just...not yet.

The whole experience also made her face the fact that the only thing that bonded her to Elia was the danger they shared, otherwise she knew very little about the woman, though what she had seen was endearing enough. Strength was a quality she recognized and the woman loved her children fiercely.

Still though, it would not be a bad thing for her to get to know her ward better. Rhaenys, sweet girl as she was, provided much knowledge but ever since the skirmish at the ford she had remained quiet, though thankfully it was not as bad as it had been the last time she had seen someone die right in front of her. There was life in those eyes, just hidden behind a layer of fear. It made her stomach knot seeing her like that but there was little she could do.

"Mhhm...Ash…?"

Ash paused her stretching, looking to Elia who was blearily rubbing at her face.

"The sun hasn't risen. Better if you sleep some more" she said to the woman but Elia shook her head and sat up, splashing water on her face from the washbasin by her bedside.

"If there is anyone that needs sleep it is you Lady Ash" Elia said quietly "you wake far too early and stand guard too late, but I suppose needs must though do not overexert yourself"

Ash nodded, humming and they passed the time in silence with the Warden continuing her stretching and Elia taking her time to get ready, apparently appreciating the comforts she was afforded. The children slept on, all but dead to the world.

"She has grown on you" Elia commented with a smile as the woman was getting dressed.

Ash blinked, turning her gaze from Rhaenys' sleeping form "I..suppose?"

Her concern had been growing certainly, and it was difficult to not look over her shoulder to make sure Rhaenys was still with them. Ash had become so used to the little girl's abundance of energy that the absence of it was keenly felt.

"It will be difficult but she will return to how she was before, of that I am certain. She just needs time" Elia patted her shoulder "And me and you by her side"

Ash raised a brow.

"You are our pillar of strength Lady Ash. Let her rest on you for a while longer. After all as you have grown fond of her so has she to you"

That...felt good to know. Her chest tingled with a sensation she couldn't identify.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence, leisurely preparing for the day until the sun began to rise, orange fingers spreading in the grey-blue sky.

"Who is Lord Stark?" she decided to ask.

Elia looked surprised for a moment but came to a realisation "Ah, of course you wouldn't know. Well, Rhaenys has told you about the Great Houses of Westeros?"

Ash nodded "Starks have ruled the north for near eight-thousand years"

Elia waved a hand, brushing her hair "Yes, quite a stable lineage. This one is the current Lord Paramount of the North, Eddard Stark, the second son and third child of the previous Lord. If what I have heard about him is true then he has his father's honour but not yet the experience. He is a young man forced to grow and as a spare would not have learned as much as his brother, though he was fostered by Jon Arryn"

"Can he be trusted?"

Elia sighed, looking down at the hair in her hands, rays of morning light filtering through the shutters of their window to illuminate the room. "He was speaking the truth last night, that much I felt. He is as easy to read as you are" she chuckled.

Ash raised a brow at her, again.

Elia only laughed some more. "He is earnest, besides, we have little choice for now. I'd rather not say no to their generous offer" She shook her head and patted a chair "But enough about that. For now come, sit down. Your hair is fraying out of its braid. Let me perform my squirely duty and make sure my Knight is presentable"

Ash was reluctant, to say the least, but she accepted nonetheless and sat in front of the woman who unbound her messy braid and let her wiry hair free. Then Elia began to comb it, joking about how her hair was as tough as her as she forced the comb through the knots and tangles. Slowly her reluctant, twitchy body relaxed under Elia's ministrations and soft, humorous words. It was an intimacy that she had so long forgotten, bringing back memories and feelings that had been buried under a mountain of ash in a place she barely remembered. As Elia ran her hands through her hair Ash saw in her mind's eye a woman with sun blonde hair and bright, emerald eyes, crinkled at the corners from laughter and smiles.

So relaxed, so deep in her memories was she that it was only when Elia gently brushed her thumb across her cheeks that Ash realised a tear had even fallen.

The Princess said nothing about it, only smiling at her and braiding her hair.

* * *

The morning meal was an awkward affair, to say the least.

In part because the Northmen were unsure of how to address the Princess and Elia herself didn't help in that regard, focusing on making sure Rhaenys and Ash were eating. The food, a simple but hearty dish of stewed pork with vegetables abundant in the Reach, while a far cry from what she was used to was still leagues better than the plain jerky and foraged edibles they had been surviving on. Rhaenys had no problems wolfing it down, so much so that Elia had to get her to slow down and clean up the mess she was making. Ash though was hardly eating, instead her eyes were shifting, scanning the environment and keeping watch on their companions who, in turn, were either openly staring at her or trying to hide the fact.

Ash had come out of their room with her helmet tucked under her arm and the Northmen, as Elia had expected, were more than a little surprised. It was the main reason conversation was so...muted.

"This is the first warm meal you've had in a long while" Elia said quietly to the Warden "Please, relax and eat. You will be more aware when you are fed"

Though reluctant to look away from perceived dangers Ash did in the end tuck in.

The awkwardness melted away soon after that as the Northmen found other things to occupy their attentions. Once everyone broke their fast they mounted up, Elia and Aegon riding with Eddard, Rhaenys and Ash with William Dustin. Though she didn't show it Elia was thankful to be back on a horse again, and on an actual road rather than rough ground.

As they rode she looked over at Ash and her daughter, the latter of whom was a little more lively than yesterday which she took as a good sign, though she still worried. The girl had latched onto either herself or Ash, never letting go, and seemed to fear the men they were around. Even now with Rhaenys between William and Ash she had her arms wrapped tightly around the warden and seemed to press herself as close as possible to her. It was an issue she would have to speak to her about in time.

"I...did not know there were any female knights in the south, my lady" Eddard said. Elia took her eyes off of her daughter and faced the man, or rather, the back of his head.

"No, there arent any. She is unique" _More so than you can ever imagine._

"She must be quite skilled to have helped you escape through the Lannisters"

The Princess had to stifle a giggle. _Ah, Lord Stark. You have much to learn about being subtle in your words._

"She is. Amazingly so. I daresay even an equal to Arthur Dayne himself!"

Eddard sputtered, wide eyed "S-surely you jest my lady"

Elia smiled at that "Perhaps, Lord Stark. Perhaps. Though, she is a terrifying force either way"

The Northman nodded at that "That I can believe"

* * *

The journey to Oldtown took the better part of a week and a half from Bitterbridge, sticking to the Roseroad as they did, though there was a notable exception. To avoid any unwarranted attention the party decided to avoid Highgarden entirely and circle around it, riding hard for most of the day until they left the mighty castle well in the background and covered by the dust thrown by their horses. They slept in roadside Inns during the night and kept a steady pace through the day, though taking a stop for a lunch break and for Elia to get out from under the sun.

Eventually they arrived at the main gates of the ancient, and still very prosperous, city. The gatehouse was a large, imposing building of white sandstone, a keep in its own right in many ways with two, thick, rounded towers on either side of the gate itself. It's portcullises, two of them, were raised allowing for the heavy traffic on the Roseroad to pass through. Merchants, peasants and nobility alike passed through the gates in wagons, carts and wheel houses and on foot and horse. Quite literally towering above it all was the famed Hightower jutting eight hundred feet into the sky at the very tip of which was a great beacon of fire, though it was left unlit during this particularly clear and sunny day.

For a moment the party paused to take it all in. None of them had ever been to Oldtown before and for the Northmen this was as far south as they had ever come in Westeros.

"It is quite the sight is it not Lord Stark?"

"Indeed my lady" the man said, gazing in awe at the Hightower.

Elia looked at Ash to see the Warden was also entrapped by the wonder of the city, though worryingly she also had one arm wrapped around Rhaenys and her other hand had a loose grip around her sword. Elia realised then that Ash was less enamoured and more wary for soon the Warden was again scanning her surroundings and looking at the people that passed them by.

She frowned but she could do little. _She has been wary in the Inns, but not to the point of drawing her sword. Perhaps the more people that are around, the more wary she is?_

Elia felt it was a safe assumption to make considering how the Warden had been acting in nearly every Inn they rested at.

 _Still, little to be done now._ She shook her head and mentioned to Eddard, and thus the rest of the party, to get going. Despite the splendour of the old city, and there was much splendour to behold, they were not here to visit.

Since navigating Oldtown by themselves was a hopeless endeavour they hired a local guide to take them to the wharfs where the party set about trying to find a ship that was sailing east, which was an easy enough thing to find, but was also willing to take them to Starfall, which was a harder thing to negotiate. Eventually, after tiring negotiations with a red bearded and brown haired Lyseni captain, they managed to charter passage aboard the _Everlasting Bounty_ which was set to leave on the morning. Since most of the day was spent finding their way through the city and negotiating for a ship, the sun had already gone down as they struck the deal with Orleon the Redbeard so the party were happy to finally get some rest at an Inn.

It was after they finished their evening meal, a moment that Elia spent learning more about their Northern companions, that Elia had excused herself from the company of the Northmen, nodding to Eddard as she passed him by.

"Aegon is getting hungry and I need to bring food upstairs. I will see you in the morning, good night Lord Stark"

He nodded in turn "Goodnight my Lady, send my regards to Lady Ash"

With a chorus of 'goodnight's Elia went up to the room she shared with her children and Ash, as had become the norm during their travels. On the way she bid a serving wench to have food brought up to the room. When she opened the door, she also found something that had become something of a pattern, especially in Inns that were lively and full of patrons.

Ash was in the room with Rhaenys, the former cleaning or polishing her sword and the latter resting against her and happily chatting away.

It was such a peaceful, _normal_ , sight that Elia almost forgot why they were there.

"Mother!" Rhaenys smiled at her while Ash nodded a greeting.

 _At least she trusts the Northmen enough to leave me alone with them._

Though that involved more her persuasion skills than anything else.

 _Still_ , Elia thought as she took a seat and began to feed her baby, _it's an improvement_.

Soon enough food was brought in and the other two had their supper. Elia had wanted to discuss so many things with her Warden but in the end decided this was not the time and place to do so, so instead she told them about Starfall, regaling them with the stories and legends of the place built where a falling star hand landed and about the Daynes who called it home. Rhaenys, as she always was when storytime was involved, was attentive and listening intently while Ash seemed to perk up at the mention of Dawn.

"Do you have such legendary swords in your lands Lady Ash?" Elia asked, curious.

Ash seemed to think for a moment "There are more...renowned patterns of swords certainly, things like the Diadalos and the Tringad. For particularly swords themselves...well, there are stories of the Heroic Arms"

Rhaenys' eyes lit up, then she jabbed a soup stained finger at Ash' cheek "Lady Aaaasshhh, this is a _story!"_

Before Elia could admonish her daughter for her messy eating habits Ash took the prodding finger and cleaned with a clean cloth, a slight smile on her scarred lips and amusement in her eyes.

"Maybe, but I only heard one thing about them in passing, that they only appear when there are heroes fit to wield them. I have not ever seen them in my...lifetime"

There was a strange tone that Ash used when she spoke the final word that made Elia curious.

 _One of those things that I will have to inquire about later._

Rhaenys seemed fascinated nonetheless "What are they?"

"Hmmm, there is the greatsword Gilgamesh, named after a legendary king who used his mighty strength to build a great wall to defend his people. The Narzan, an arming sword once owned by Elaine the Shadow who used it to silence demons. There are many more, one for each Order of Knights but those are the two I know something about"

"Oh, so which one will you be getting?"

Ash seemed taken aback by the question "Huh?"

"Well, since you are a Hero, it is only a matter of time that a Heroic weapon will appear before you" Rhaenys stated matter-of-factly, crossing her arms and nodding with all the authority of the world.

Elia giggled.

Ash just shrugged in muted compliance.

"Well?" the little girl pressed.

"The Gilgamesh. Greatswords are a speciality of the Order of Wardens but…" Ash shook her head, frowning "I was not anointed into the Order, not really. I only learned their style"

"Oh, why is that?"

A brief, pained look came over Ash' face before she smothered it "It's complicated"

Rhaenys frowned for a moment but nodded "Okay. What are the other Orders?"

"There are the Order of Peacekeepers and Lawbringers. There are also the Conquerors but they are not an Order per se, rather, something unique in and of themselves. Quite mad individuals those"

Elia shuddered to think what kind of person Ash though was mad.

They spoke more of Ash' home, rather Rhaenys asked questions and Ash answered while Elia listened, until they eventually turned in for the night.

* * *

It was late in the night that Elia heard it. The groaning, the shuffle of metal on wood, and the whimpering.

She sighed, slipped out under the covers and opened shutters to let the moonlight in.

Against the wall, blanket thrown aside, Ash was shaking and panting, in the throes of a vivid nightmare.

"Oh my dear…" Elia muttered with a pained expression as she went and sat by the Warden. This close Elia could see the beads of sweat that ran down the woman's pale features, made even paler under the moonlight, the strain in her eyes and her open, gasping mouth.

"Shhh, shhh" The Princess stroked the Warden's hair, brushing away the sweat and gently laying the woman's head on her lap.

Elia began to hum, stroking Ash' cheek as she had done the last time she found the woman like this.

"I wonder if you even remember these nightmares, you seem so strong when you are awake" She said to the woman quietly.

There was no reply but the Warden's shaking slowed to a stop and her erratic breathing began to even out.

As she guided Ash to a gentle sleep not for the first time did Elia remember a conversation she had with Ser Barristan so long ago.

" _Truly?" She asked, a little surprised._

" _Yes" the Knight responded "I still remember mine. It lingers, one never truly forgets it"_

" _My, you do not hear this in the tales"_

 _The man laughed "No, you do not. It would not make them so attractive, to learn that killing even 'evil' men will leave one scarred in the mind"_

" _Well, what do you do for these 'scars' of the mind?"_

 _The Kingsguard shrugged "You carry on"_

Looking down at Ash' peaceful, resting face, Elia continued to stroke her cheek. "It happened, so you move on hm?"

* * *

A/N: So. This chapter took a while to write. Not gunna lie it was mostly because I am lazy. Sorry for that, though I do try and put out a chapter a week at least.

Like last chapter this one started with different intetions, I had planned to get to Starfall by now but it seems it was not to be, though I hope it is still a usefull chapter in terms of character development.

Hopefully the next chapter will actually go as planned because I really want to write what I planned and I promise you, its going to be...something. Truly something. Hopefully...

Thank you all again for your reviews, favourites and follows!


	6. Chapter 6-Starfall

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews, favourites and follows as always!**

 **Yay, early update! I was really exited about this chapter so I devoted my weekend (when I wasnt throwing up on the toilet) to writing it.**

 **Also, I got my Warden up to Rep 1 and now I am getting my face smashed in because I suck at the game and im facing people who do not suck at the game. I didnt even know you could faint/cancel attack until like ten hours into it and im still quite bad at it. Also cant guardbreak to save my life. Literally.**

 **But anyway, it's still plenty of fun and I do want to get better at it so ill keep smacking my head into the wall and hope I learn something.**

 **That or until Ubisoft implements an actual MMR system, that would be good too.**

 **Anyway, enjoy and thank you all again for the reviews, favourites and follows!**

* * *

Ash had obviously never been on a ship before and it was showing. The normally stoic and controlled woman was leaning over the railing, heaving and spitting and groaning to high heaven as the ship cut through the sea. Thankfully she had yet to lose her breakfast though Elia felt that was a time soon to come.

She patted the woman's arm as Ash groaned.

 _The sea is not even rough my dear._

The Princess chose not to voice her thoughts.

Aside from Ash, a few of the Northmen were also going green but were not as badly affected as the Warden seemed to be. Rhaenys on the other hand was a bundle of joy, much to the chagrin of the crew who tried, and failed, to get the girl to calm down. Elia would have done so if not for the fact that seeing her daughter running around with such a carefree smile and being an adventurous little rascal made her feel so relieved. Slowly, bit by bit, Rhaenys was returning to her old self beyond the safe confines that her mother and Lady Ash represented and Elia had no wish to halt that recovery.

Besides, Ser Mark Ryswell and Ethan Glover, both men who found steady feet aboard the ship, kept a close enough eye on the girl and Elia herself did not fare too badly on the seas.

"Try not to think about the ship moving too much. Focus on the air, the sky, the sun. Anything other than the moving" She advised the Warden who only nodded.

Then Ash started humming.

Elia''s brows rose in surprise for a moment, then a soft smile formed on her lips as she sung softly.

"Gentle mother, font of mercy…"

* * *

Starfall was a gleaming sandstone castle situated on a rocky island right in the middle of the Torentine river where it opened out into the Summer Sea. It was an imposing complex, surrounded by a curtain of thick walls built on sharp, scraggly rock, near impossible to scale. In the center was the main keep, the Palestone Sword roofed with rich, purple tiles like the rest of the buildings. Tall towers rose above the keep giving a commanding view of the surroundings. The banners of House Dayne, the white sword and falling star on a background of rich purple, hung on the battlements, flapping with the wind.

As the ship came closer Ned swallowed his nervousness and tried to contain his awe. Starfall was a castle suited to the stories of the Age of Heroes, though it was far older with the Daynes being descendants of First Men and boasting of a lineage that stretched back to the Dawn Age. In fact, it seemed everything about the Daynes were from a fairytale, with a castle founded where a falling star hit the earth, a sword made from said star and a princess whose beauty was unmatched in an entire Kingdom.

Ned bit his lips and clenched his hands, holding back a tear and remembering that some fairy tales had tragedies.

 _What is done is done, you are married now, to a good woman_. He kept his gaze away from the fluttering banners, trying not to think of what could have been.

The _Everlasting Bounty_ slowed to stop and the sailors moored on the island's dock, extending a gangplank so that its passengers could walk ashore. The Direwolf banner that had been hung on the mast was taken down and handed to a groaning Theo Wull, the tall mountain man raising the banner as he disembarked with some eagerness.

On the dock was a fully armed and armoured Knight and with him were a handful of similarly armed and armoured men-at-arms, all bearing the tabard of House Dayne.

"In the name of Lord Dorren Dayne, Lord of Starfall, state your business in Starfall!" the Knight called out with all formality.

"I am Lord Eddard Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Lord Paramount of the North. I wish to speak with Lord Dorren Dayne and Lady Ashara. With me are.." He listed off his Northmen companions, titles and all as protocol demanded. "...Also with me-" he turned to look at Elia who had her hood up. At his pause she looked at him then nodded, pulling back the hood "-are Princess Elia Martell, her children Aegon and Rhaenys as well as Ser Ashford, their Warden"

The Knight looked stunned, unable to process words. Ned couldn't blame him.

Eventually the man regained his senses and began to bark orders to the men-at-arms "Go back to the keep and inform Lord Dorren, be quick about it!" He turned to Ned "My Lord, I am Ser Mychael Urston, of Torengate, a Knight of House Dayne. Please, all of you, follow me"

They walked up the wide sandstone steps towards the Palestone Sword and Ned was feeling far too many emotions to truly appreciate the castle up close and from the inside.

When they passed underneath the gatehouse, he saw her.

Ashara Dayne was not called the greatest beauty in all of Westeros for nothing. Lightly tanned skin, long silken black hair that fell to her breast and utterly, absolutely stunning violet eyes, Ashara looked every bit the Princess that every man dreamed of having, that every story spoke of and every little girl wished to be. She was wearing a light purple dress in the Dornish style which left her slender neck and arms bare. Jewels, of the most vibrant sapphires and the shiniest silver, adorned her in the form of a necklace and bracelets, shining against her dusky skin.

When she saw Elia she gasped, dainty fingers covering her plump, rose red lips. Then she sprinted across the courtyard on jeweled slippers and the two women met in a frenzied, emotional embrace.

"Oh my Lady, oh gods!" Ashara choked out "When I heard about the sack of King's Landing I thought the worst!"

Elia embraced her tighter "No, thanks the gods no. I live" she reluctantly pulled back, face as tear stained as Ashara's, then brought Rhaenys forward and motioned for Lady Ash to bring Aegon "Me and my children"

Ashara made a strangled noise, caught between squealing and choking a cry. Rhaenys, lips quivering herself, jumped on the woman and wrapped her little arms around Ashara's waist and cried into her skirts. Whatever the girl was saying Ned couldn't tell as it was muffled. Ashara herself bent down and gathered the girl up into a hug as tight as the one she had given her mother, showering the little princess with kisses. The woman did the same to Aegon, though much gentler. The baby seemed to at least recognise something familiar about her as his pudgy little arms reached for her hair and face.

"Thank the Gods both Old and New" Ashara sniffled, then looked beyond Elia and her children to the Northmen, her soft violet eyes landing on Ned. Suddenly the Lord of Winterfell was once again back at Harrenhall when those same enchanting eyes looked to him, beyond his charming brother who bedded a woman everywhere he went, beyond a number of other noblemen, beyond first sons and gallant knights to a young man from the frozen North who bore no grand name and inherited no great titles.

But the image was dispelled almost immediately, for there was pain in those eyes now, pain and sorrow and, Ned's heart skipped a beat, _yearning_.

"Ned…" He swore he heard her whisper before Dorren Dayne made his presence known.

The man was an older Arthur, slightly taller with the same black hair though Dorren wore his longer, reaching to his shoulders. He wore a rich doublet of purple and black, gilded with thread-of-gold with black trousers and soft leather shoes.

"My Lords, My Lady" He nodded to them "I welcome you to Starfall"

Servants brought out trays of bread and salt which they all partook in, though Lady Ash seemed a little hesitant. After some prompting from Elia she lifted her visor and ate the salted bread.

Dorren and Ashara were taken aback by the face beneath the visor but Elia gave them both a look and a promise to explain things later.

They were taken inside the keep and Dorren summoned Ned and Elia to his solar with Ashara joining them. Ash was instructed to remain with the children and followed the nursemaids.

* * *

The sun had begun to set and Rhaenys dragged Ash up the Palestone Sword's greatest tower to see it go. There were so many steps that, by the time they both reached the topmost balcony, Ash had ended up carrying Rhaenys for even the girls seemingly boundless energy could be sapped by a neverending flight of stairs.

It was worth it though, Ash thought, for the sunset truly was a beautiful thing. The sun had just gone down behind the mountains but still cast its shafts of light out from behind the snowy peaks. The light had turned into a purple glow mixed with red and in many ways the sky reflected the little girl's eyes in colour.

The pair stood there, Rhaenys holding Ash' hand, until the last hint of sunlight disappeared and the darkness had set in, and the stars began to sparkle in the night black sky.

"Lady Ash, Rhaenys" Lord Eddard found them eventually, huffing and puffing slightly as he stepped onto the balcony.

Ash turned to face the Lord of Winterfell and nodded. Elia had spoken to her about the man's sense of honour and was fairly certain that he would do nothing untoward.

"Lord Dorren has prepared a dinner for us and Lady Elia wished for me to bring you to the dining hall"

Rhaenys seemed excited about the idea of food and made to rush off, Ash in hand but stopped when the Warden did not move.

"Go ahead" Ash said to the girl "I want to speak with Lord Stark for a moment"

The little girl seemed reluctant. Ash squeezed her hand "I promise I will join you shortly"

Rhaenys frowned but eventually left, though not before giving her a hug.

Eddard looked at her curiously "My Lady?"

"Elia has informed me that we will likely run across the Kingsguard?"

The man nodded, looking slightly surprised "Uhm, yes. Ser Gerold Hightower, Ser Oswell Whent and Ser Arthur Dayne are likely holding my sister"

"They are skilled?"

The man looked like lightning had struck him "Skilled? My Lady, they are some of the best Knights of the whole realm! Surely you know of at least Ser Arthur?"

Ash shook her head, recalling the basic story Elia had concocted for her to explain away discrepancies in her knowledge of Westeros "I was raised by a former hedge Knight who wound up in Essos, I am not so informed of the affairs of the realm"

Eddard scratched his head but seemed to accept it "Very well. What is it you wish to know about them?"

"Since there is a strong possibility that they are hostile, I would like to know how they fight, their weapons and their styles" Elia had admitted her lack of knowledge on that front, only that the three Knights were very dangerous, practiced with their longswords and that Dawn was liable to break even castle forged steel.

Eddard grimaced as he put his forearms on the bannister "I would rather we not have to fight at all, but I see the wisdom in wanting to know about one's enemies. Well, let us start with Ser Gerold, the 'White Bull' and Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. His preferred weapon is the longsword and as his moniker suggests, he is quite the strong man. Though I don't know much about how he actually fights.

Then there is Ser Oswell Whent. He also fights with a longsword but unlike Ser Gerold he is more known for his techniques and quick thinking"

Ash nodded, stowing the knowledge in her mind and calling upon her own experiences against such enemies. "And Ser Arthur?"

Eddard sighed, looking out into the mountains "He is...every boy dreams to be him, even I did. The greatest swordsman alive. His speed and skill is unequalled. Where Ser Gerold smashes his opponents into dust, Ser Arthur will _dance_ around them. He wields Dawn, do you know about this sword?"

Ash nodded "A greatsword forged from star-metal"

"Mhmm. Though it is not as tall as yours but I hazard a guess that, like valyrian steel, the star-metal makes it lighter and stronger than regular steel which is how he is able to wield it with one hand. In the other he carries an arming sword rather than a parrying dagger"

Ash conjured an image of this swordsman, starting by forming the construct of a Peacekeeper with their arming sword and parrying dagger, then elongating the blades. "A dangerous opponent"

"He is that, and more besides. The greatest Knight in the realm, the most chivalrous and most renown. The Paragon of Knights. Many know him from breaking apart the Kingswood Brotherhood, an organization of bandits that once haunted the Kingswood. Do you know how he did it?"

The Warden shook her head.

"He did it by talking to the smallfolk, listening to their problems, bringing them justice and a chance for prosperity. Eventually they turned away from the Brotherhood and told him their hideout. He killed their leader, the Smiling Knight, a man with a twisted sense of honour and a scar that gave him his name. The best thing about that story though? It is that he kept his promises to the smallfolk. He went back, shared the ill-gotten spoils and ensured that even the Mad King's lunacy did not reach the people of the Kingswood. He did his duty and more"

 _Oh, what a sweet story_ the dark voice spoke suddenly and Ash felt her spine seize up. _A Knight in shining armour,_ _**she**_ mocked. _Let him taste true war and then we shall see how much he shines._

Ash crushed the voice down, eyes shut and teeth gritting.

"Ned!"

Ashara Dayne appeared at the doorway, looking like she ran up the stairs and made to run to Eddard when she spotted Ash. The woman rushed to a stop, a red blush on her cheeks appearing "Ah, uhm. Pardon me, Lady Ash. Uhm, the food is being brought out now. We are awaiting you" she looked at Ned "Both of you"

The distraction was enough for her to dismiss her inner demon. Ash nodded to them and walked past the woman, beginning her ascent down the steps. The pair followed after, though it took them a little time to do so Ash idly noted.

* * *

They set off that morning leaving Aegon and Rhaenys behind, much to the latter's despair. It was the first time Ash heard Rhaenys' wailing cry as she tried to gently pry the girl off of her and Elia. Eventually they managed to calm her down with promises to return. To ensure such she even gave Ash her "favour", a kiss on her cheek and a strip of purple silk which she tied around the Warden's arm with the promise to have it returned to her.

Elia and Ash accompanied Eddard and his Northmen companions to the Tower of Joy, the place where the Lord of Winterfell's sister was supposedly being kept, or at least the location of Ser Arthur Dayne.

As they travelled through the dusty and rocky paths of the Dornish Mountains Ash found herself feeling familiar with the environment. The lowlands were arid scrublands with few trees and more dust and sand than grass. The heat of the sun itself was a familiar feeling and she fared the best out of all of them under it, compared with Elia's constitution and the Northmen's inexperience with the dry heat, a fact which the latters complained about loudly and consistently. They rode for a few hours, taking breaks beneath whatever shade they could find until, cresting a hill, they finally saw a square, sandstone tower on a hill in the distance.

Conversation slowed to a stop and they stared at the tower for a moment. Then Eddard urged his horse onwards, breaking the trance and spurring them to follow.

They made their way up the worn path on the rocky hill which took them to the base of the tower. Waiting for them there were three men in shining, near silver-looking, steel armour with the emblem of a three headed dragon embossed on their breastplates.

"Sers" Elia took charge, remaining on her horse while the others dismounted. Ash walked over to her side as the the Dornishwoman pushed forwards.

The three nodded to the Princess, undoubtedly they had been spotted earlier.

"Princess Elia, it gladdens my heart to see you" A tall blonde with curly hair spoke. Going by his build Ash assumed it was Gerold Hightower.

Elia, now clothed in a Dornish dress and traveling cloak borrowed from Ashara, cut a more regal figure than the Rag Queen she had been for the journey to Dorne. "I would be dead if not for a Knight from the Stranger" she laid a hand on Ash' helmet. The King's Guards looked to the Warden, brows raised, while Elia drew a breath.

"My husband, your Prince, is dead" She declared "Killed by the hand of the now King Robert Baratheon. Your King is dead by the hand of your brother Ser Jaime Lannister, killed when the Lannisters sacked King's Landing. You are Kingsguard without a King"

The men showed little emotion at that, in fact, they seemed resigned to it.

"But it needs not be that way. My son Aegon is alive and so is my daughter, and I need strong and loyal men to help me protect them. Swear your swords to them, continue your oaths and defend the line of your Prince and King"

A tense, silent, moment followed. The Northmen had unsheathed their swords, or axe in the case of Theo Wull, and the Kingsguard had donned their helms and brandished their weapons in turn.

"You make a fine point" One of them spoke, a man carrying two swords. Arthur Dayne.

Ash focused in on the greatsword he was holding in one hand, a sword unlike any other she had ever seen. It was milk white with swirls and patterns in the metal and a shining sun made of gold embossed on the pommel.

"Yet" Arthur continued "You travel with a man who has dishonoured my sister and betrayed his oaths to his sovereign King" he pointed Dawn at Eddard.

The Lord of Winterfell narrowed his eyes "A mad king is no true King"

The Kingsguard shared a look between them "It is not our place to judge Kings, only to serve them" they chorused.

Ash recognized the look in their eyes and brought her blade forth, stepping in front of Elia. It prompted the others to ready their arms as well. The Princess herself was shaking her head in disbelief "You intend to fight? This is madness! Ser Gerold, Ser Oswell, you have a duty to my children! Ser Arthur, your sister awaits you in Starfall! Listen to sense!"

Gerold shook his head "Our duty is here"

Elia looked around her, at the brandished weapons, at the faces of the men committed to violence. She shook her head and bent down to whisper to the Warden "Take Ser Arthur alive, leave the rest to their fate" then she retreated behind the Northmen palming her face and muttering all the way "Fools. Madmen"

They looked at each other, seven Northmen, one Warden and three Kingsguard.

Eddard made to speak.

Ash rushed Arthur.

With two great strides she leapt at him bringing her sword down over her shoulder. The man's eyes widened in surprise but he reacted admirably by dashing backwards leaving Ash to swipe at empty air but the warden followed through with a shoulder charge.

"Miserum!"

She connected sending him further back on unsteady, but still grounded, feet. Ash followed up with a mighty uppercut that connected cutting into his breastplate and scoring the first hit. The Warden pressed her advantage by going for an overhead swing, drawing her body up and putting her strength behind the blow but the Sword of the Morning was not an empty title.

Arthur blocked, crossing his swords above his head to trap Ash' own and throwing the greatsword to the side. He went on the offensive by circling quickly to her unguarded left and thrust at her arm and torso, both of which connected. Dawn pierced her pauldron and chainmail while the arming sword slid through the gap between her plate.

Grunting, Ash swung her sword wide with her left arm and smashed the edge into Arthur's jaw sending the man back and bending his cheek guard. Switching hands once more she slashed at him from a top guard but he dodged, thrusting the arming sword to her face forcing her lean to the side and then swinging Dawn for her knee which she blocked.

They circled each other, a moment to catch their breath before Arthur swung Dawn low. Ash stepped back and swiped at his extended arm but he parried with his other sword, sending the greatsword off target into the dirt. Like a spring he leapt at her with Dawn poised to thrust into her chest but she angled her body out of the way of the blade and shoulder barged him. The hit halted his momentum and forced air out of his lungs and Ash took that moment to rain blows on his exposed form. She scored two hits, biting into his collar and cutting into his helmet before he recovered, blocking and locking her sword with his own and throwing it aside.

Now the one exposed Arthur swung a strong blow with Dawn that slashed at her thigh, just missing the knee but cutting through flesh all the same.

Ash swung her sword, more to ward him away than to hit and succeeded in making him dodge back.

But Arthur Dayne smelt blood and launched a ferocious flurry of attacks, wielding his two swords with skill and speed and descending upon Ash like a relentless shower of steel. With two blades against one it was inevitable that some hits threaded through the gaps in Ash' defence. Collar, shoulder, right upper arm, left lower arm, more hits to her sides, hips, thighs. Dawn cut through her well worn plate in places where the armour had already taken a beating and there were many of those spots for Arthur to exploit, which he did so with ruthless efficiency.

Eventually the Sword of the Morning broke through the Warden's crumbling defences, feinting, drawing her notched and battered blade aside, then rushing in with a shoulder barge that put the woman on the ground. Dawn was raised, poised to cut her head in two.

A bloodied Theo Wull, carrying an equally bloodied Oswell Whent over his shoulder, barreled into Arthur sending the Knight stumbling into the ground. The mountain man carried on, a great roar on his lips as he threw the Whent knight onto a boulder, stunning Oswall and proceeded to savage the knight with his greataxe.

The reprieve was enough for Ash to get back on her feet, though she swayed and her body shook with little tremors. Nevertheless she pressed, forcing herself onto the offensive against Arthur with measured swings which the man easily blocked.

Then, suddenly, she reversed her grip and swung wide smashing the crossguard of her sword into his right shoulder, the one holding Dawn. It was a solid hit, crumpling the pauldron.

The man grunted but kept his grip on his blade.

Ash followed through, both hands on the blade and using her greatsword more as a poleaxe than a sword as she slammed her pommel into his face breaking his nose and tried to hook his legs and sweep them from under him. However the knight again dodged the attempt, dancing away to her side and attacking with fast, precise strikes, scoring more slashes on her arm.

The Warden brought her weapon level in front of her, showing the flat of the blade and rushed the man but he was not bowled over ash she had hoped, staying on his feet and thrusting from above and below her blade. She dodged back and swung wide again but only succeeded in knocking his blades aside.

 _You will die, as you are now_ The Demon suddenly spoke in her mind.

Ash faltered. Arthur took the chance to gain some distance between them.

 _LEAVE ME BE!_ She screamed inside herself.

 _If you continue as you are, trying to disable him, trying to take him alive, you will die._

 _I have my task_ Ash thought bitterly.

 _A foolish one. He intends to kill you. You do not intend to kill him. This will only end one way_

 _I. Have. My. Task_.

She blocked a swing from Dawn resulting in another notch on her blade. A small crack opened up.

The Warden counterattacked, scoring a decent hit and going for another before Arthur parried with Dawn forcing Ash to take a step back.

 _A Wolf listens to its instincts and hunts. Sheep listen to their shepherds and are slaughtered._

 _Be. Silent._

 _Listen, Wolf. Listen, or die._

She caught Arthur's blades as he made a wide swing when she feinted, looking like she exposed her guard. The two swords clashed against her own with a resounding clang.

The crack widened.

She forced his blades aside, exposing him and scored more hits with careful and well aimed cuts. His right arm was starting to look unsteady, grip on Dawn flexing.

 _Rhaenys will never speak again when she sees your corpse._

She fumbled a swing.

Arthur swung hard with both swords.

Ash only just managed to bring her sword to block.

Her greatsword _shattered_.

* * *

Arthur carried through the shattered sword, Dawn biting into his opponent's neck, slicing through chainmail into the flesh beneath. He pressed deeper, bringing the man to his knees and sawing the wound deeper as he drew Dawn back.

 _Finally._

He let out a single breath of relief, then blinked when his opponent did the same.

 _How?!_

The man was still breathing, still alive despite the sheer number of wounds he had inflicted upon him, wounds that would have made any other opponent either die outright or bleed to death. Yet this one still drew breath, still lived on.

He shook his head, focusing, forcing his tired and weary arms up one last time to remove the head of the most stubborn opponent he had ever faced.

"It is over" he mumbled as he brought his swords down.

The man surged upwards catching his hands and forcing them up, bringing them face to face.

"No, it has begun"

Arthur's eye, the one not shut by blood, widened and he struggled to get out of the grip.

He received a headbutt for his troubles.

The Sword of the Morning was sent sprawling back, seeing double for a moment. Arthur used his swords as a crutch to help him stand, planting them on the ground and pulling himself up.

He was set upon before he could however.

His opponent had picked up the shattered remains of his sword, a hilt and with a sheared blade no more than a foot long that he was now trying to plunge through Arthur's face. Arthur held the arm at bay, grunting and groaning as they struggled on the ground.

Then he managed to slip his hand through and jab his opponent's neck forcing the man to loosen his grip and let the shattered sword fall to the side. Arthur followed up with an elbow and another punch to the helmet and finally finished with his own headbut that forced the man off of him, sending him scrambling back on his knees.

Arthur struggled to get back up to his feet, his whole body aching and the feeling in his right arm was going numb. He could barely see out of one eye, the cut on his forehead bleeding profusely and covering it with blood. He could barely breathe through his broken nose and every inch of muscle screamed in pain whenever he moved anything. He was tired, near spent.

Yet he had to keep going, to see this through to the very end.

His enemy had also gotten to their feet, broken blade in hand.

He licked his lips and tasted blood.

"Who are you?" He managed to get between pants.

The man remained silent for a moment, then removed his helmet.

Arthur's jaw fell.

The woman, for behind those savage scars and the bruises there was a definite feminine face, looked at him with her forest green eyes.

"War. I am War" she said with a rasping voice.

Then she threw her helmet at him, hitting him in the head. Her body followed suit.

They grappled, they punched, they elbowed, clawed, bit, spit and smashed their heads against each other in a brawl on the dusty floor. Gone was any semblance of grace or agility, honour or respect, only the dirty, vicious desire to utterly destroy each other remained and it fueled their fight. It pushed them to savage each other like two predators tearing at each other's throats.

Arthur eventually dragged himself up, his opponent held onto him and be brought a fist to her face and received once to his jaw in turn. He smashed a knee into her crotch and she was bent over allowing him to get an elbow to the back of her head sending her face first into the ground, releasing her grip on him.

Arthur staggered back to his swords. He tried to pick up the arming sword but his right hand couldn't grip and it toppled over so he picked up Dawn with his left and turned to face his opponent.

She got up to her feet, wiping her lips and spitting a wad of mucus and blood.

Arthur gathered up the last of his strength for a final charge, sword raised to cut the woman down.

"Lady Ash!" Eddard Stark yelled as he threw Ice to the woman.

Arthur closed just as she caught it and he swung, just as she blocked it.

Arthur's heart beat as time slowed.

Ash stared at him with dead green eyes.

She smashed the hilt across his face sending him to the dirt and he landed on his hands and knees. He was kicked in the gut and rolled over onto his back, looking up at the clear blue sky.

Lady Ash stood above him, Ice poised over her head.

She swung and Arthur closed his eyes.

"ASH NOOO!"

There was pain, then nothing.

* * *

 **A/N: Whew! That felt good to write and hopefully it was good to read as well.**

 **The fight with Arthur and the subsequent ending was planned and decided fairly early on when I was planning this story though until I started to write it I did not see how it would actually happen.**

 **Then I played 1v1 against Peacekeepers and there you go.**

 **I actually had a little trouble deciding what For Honor class Arthur would be as in the books Dawn is apparently a greatsword, so I assume it is two handed and he could be a Warden, yet in the show Arthur dual wields so he could be a Peacekeeper (Not that I keep strictly to class movesets anyway).**

 **In the end I decided that the symbolism of Peacekeeper, an order that maintains stability and security throughout the land suited my particular version of Arthur more than a Warden did though both are pretty good for him. It made it all the more poignant, for me anyway, as Ash is a product of Apollyon, a child of chaotic war.**

 **Or maybe im trying to find an excuse to put in Apollyon's "I am war" line because it was awesome. Maybe.**

 **Anyway, thank you all for reading!**

 **PS: Mass Effect: Andromeda is coming out on the 22'nd and I intend to purchase it. This will likely have an impact on update frequency though I hope not too badly.** **Also, I am doing an essay and I need time to research and eventually write it. Just keep these things in mind if I dont update so frequently.**


	7. Chapter 7- Wolf

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews, favourites and follows! They are hugely appreciated.**

 **P.S: I mentioned last chapter I cant guard break. I actually meant I cant block guard breaks. Im not that bad, I promise.**

 **Mostly.**

* * *

The sword fell like an executioner's axe.

Elia screamed.

It shifted, the slightest movement.

With a wet, squelching sound Arthur Dayne's right hand was severed at the forearm.

Ash stood over Ser Arthur, looking down at the defeated Sword of the Morning. Elia urged her horse forward, over the decapitated body of Ser Gerold and dismounted next to her Warden.

"Ash?" She tentatively called out as she laid a hand on the Warden's pauldron which fell apart at her touch. Elia gasped, pulling her hand back, looking between Ash and Ser Arthur.

Then Ash slumped onto Ice, bits of armour falling off and Elia instinctively went to catch her but struggled to do so until Ned gave assistance, taking hold of the Warden and gently guiding the woman to the ground.

"She's unconscious my Lady and badly wounded" the man said as he hurriedly tried to patch up the Warden's wounds.

Elia stood for a moment, the shock coming up to her as she saw in close detail just how badly Ash had been injured. Her armour had been shredded, the plate crumbling to pieces and the chain underneath a tattered mess of metal links, falling apart where it had been cut into by Dawn. She knelt, eyes wide and head feeling light as she pressed on a piece of cloth that had found its way to her hands somehow.

 _This cannot not be happening_ , Elia thought distantly, eyes staring into the disgustingly wide slash at Ash's collar that she was pressing the cloth into. _Ash cannot...cannot...how?_

She swallowed, mouth dry as the desert of her country as the bloth soaked up the Warden's blood.

Distantly she heard a scream.

"Lady Elia" Martyn Cassel shook her and brought her back to her senses "Please, keep pressing on her wound while we move her to the shade"

She did so as Martyn and Theo Wull carefully carried the Warden out of the sun and into the shade cast by the tower. Out of her moment of shock and disbelief, rather, stowing them away to deal with later, Elia set about cleaning the Warden's wounds and patching them up as best she could but there were so, so many and it was a greater task than patching up Ash after a bandit fight.

She had not admitted to the Warden but in truth she knew only the most basic of the healer's art, enough to treat herself when she or her children fell ill or to bandage a simple wound. She had been applying those skills, only in a grander scale, with Ash before but now she found her attempts to be utterly pitiful. Ash was most certainly bleeding on the inside and there was little Elia could do about that.

Still, she tried. She had to.

After wrapping a bandage around the ghastly shoulder wound Elia sat back, looking down at her Warden. Frustration suddenly burst inside her and the Princess balled her hands and held back the scream threatening to rush out of her mouth. Instead she settled for a long, ragged, breath.

"Gods help me, I have sent my friend to her death" she whispered, body shaking as she continued to treat Ash as best she could.

Meanwhile Ser Arthur was patched to the point where he would no longer bleed to death, at least, as analysed by Martyn. Unfortunately Ser Mark Ryswell and Ethan Glover had been slain and Lord dustin was in as critical a condition as Ser Arthur so they had to treat him as well which stretched their medicinal supplies.

While she was unawares the Lord of Winterfell and Lord of Greywater Watch had entered the tower after they heard the screaming. Martyn had run in, or rather limped in, afterwards after helping with the injured, thinking that there might have been medicines or other useful things stored inside.

That left Elia outside with three badly injured bodies and Theo Wull, who himself was winding a bandage around a slash on his arm.

It was a few moments after Martyn hobbled up the steps and into the tower that Elia remembered Ash carried with her some medical equipment of her own. After a loud and harsh slap to her forehead she searched the woman's pouches on her belt and came up with a few rolls of bandages, various pieces of cloth, oils and most interesting of all a phial which was wrapped in cloth, containing a green liquid

 _This is what Ash gave me_ Elia remembered. She uncorked it and gently tipped it into Ash's mouth, holding the Warden's head up and allowing the liquid to flow down her throat.

 _Please work, please. On all the gods old and new, please work._

As she drained the last of the green liquid she swore that Ash's wounds glowed a greenish blue for a brief moment. Elia shook her head, dismissing it as a trick by her addled mind. She certainly was not in full command of her senses at the moment.

Still, Ash kept on breathing, however weak and faint it may have been.

* * *

Ned felt utterly exhausted by day's end, both in mind and body.

 _Too late_ the thought gnawed at him. _Too weak, too slow._

He found his sister only to lose her again, only this time it was to somewhere no living could follow.

Fiery, wolf blooded Lyanna.

Lyanna, who was the first of Rickard Stark's children to learn to ride, and ride she did, as if she was born on the saddle. Brandon called her a centaur and the name stuck. He was always jealous of her superior riding skills as a child and she made sure he would stay jealous.

Lyanna, who snuck out of Nana's lessons, often to find him and Brandon on the practice yard and bug them to let her join. They would say no, she would stick her tongue out and then annoy them enough to chase her throughout Winterfell. Usually by throwing snowballs at them.

Lyanna, who could defy their father and get away with it without so much as a stern talking to.

Lyanna, who weaved him a handkerchief with their family's direwolf on it as a present for him to take to the Eyrie to remind him of home. It was a poorly made thing, the stitching at the edges loose and the direwolf only had two teeth. He kept it with him still, tucked safely in his pocket. He remembered her face when she gave it to him, she was holding back tears, trying to look uncaring but failing. He hugged her then, long and tight and neither said anything about the wet spot on his shoulder.

Lyanna, who donned armour and jousted against three knights, and won! All to teach a lesson to her Knightly opponents of their responsibilities over their own squires, squires who nearly beat Howland Reed to death and who themselves were beaten in turn.

Lyanna, his beloved sister, who smiled at him when he walked through that door. Who held his hands in her bloodstained own. Who used all the last of her strength to make him _promise_. Promise to take care of her child, to keep him safe.

Lyanna, a mother who loved her son.

Lyanna Stark, weakened by fever and who died in childbirth.

Ned sniffled, swallowing a tear as he cradled the newborn in his arms.

"Jaehaerys" He whispered to the sleeping babe. "Jaehaerys Targaryen"

Little Jaehaerys slept on like the innocent babe he was, unaware of the weight of his name and blood.

Ned held him a little closer, kissed his forehead and handed the babe back to the nursemaid, Wylla, stowing thoughts of hammers and blood away for the moment, to deal with at another time. He had other priorities in the here and now.

As one of the only uninjured members of the party, relatively, it was proposed that he ride as fast as possible to Starfall and back and bring with him a maester, as well as a cart to haul the bodies. He'd be damned if Lyanna was not interred in the crypts of Winterfell, nor the bodies of his fallen companions returned to the North where they belonged. He owed them all that much.

Martyn, Theo and Howland, the latter the only other party member not injured, would remain to guard Elia while she tended to the three heavily injured and mortally wounded in their company. Wylla would remain as well, taking care of the newborn.

With that arrangement Ned mounted Lord Dustin's red horse, the mighty animal complaining slightly but otherwise did not buck him off. With a nod to those that remained he spurred his horse and made for Starfall as fast as the wind would carry him.

Ned only hoped he was not too late on this task as well.

* * *

 _She was herded along with the other children, dirty ragged orphans like her, past the large wooden gate into the half ruined keep. Black plated soldiers prodded or dragged or carried them in and put them in a group together. All of the soldiers wore helmets or masks, hiding their faces away no matter how hard she tried to peer through slits or holes. As the children were gathered together she looked around and saw hungry, tired and sad faces all around her._

 _In front of her was a girl, slightly shorter with black hair who was shivering so badly the clatter of her teeth was audible, interrupted by the occasional sob and sniffle._

 _She remembered her mother's words then, when the family were in difficult times, when her father did not come back from the field, when her brothers did not return when they went out with swords in their hands, when all she could do was cry and ask why the world was so unfair;_

' _Have hope' her mother said._

 _It was so infuriating, so insultingly simple when she first heard it. How could she 'have hope'? After everything that had happened?_

' _Have hope, for hope is a light that warms all around you' Her mother explained after she had burst out in a fit of sorrowful rage, holding her close as she cried and speaking in that soft, calming voice that never failed to comfort her. 'Hope is the light of the lost, it is what makes the weak strong and the strong infallible, it is the dawn to banish the night and usher in a new day. You must have hope my love, wherever you go and whatever you do you must have hope. Sometimes it will be hard, sometimes you will not see the light the darkness is so thick. But it there, you must grasp for it, nurture it, keep it in hand and never let go for that hope will give you strength. And with hope, you can move mountains'_

 _When her village was consumed by fire, blood, steel and ash all that talk of hope seemed to melt away._

 _Yet, standing here with these desperate children and the lonely, shivering girl in front of her, her mother's words filtered in her ears. If she did not have hope here, she would be throwing away everything her mother taught her and those memories, those precious moments, were all she had left._

 _So she took her mother's words to hear and stepped up, embracing the smaller girl who stiffened at the touch._

' _Shhh' she soothed 'It's okay, I have you'_

 _The girl whimpered but held onto her arms nonetheless._

 _The loud clanking of steel on stone drew her attention. On the gatehouse stood the Demon that brought them all here. In the sky above her ravens circled lazily, cawing. They followed wherever the Demon went for she always left something dead behind for them to feast on._

 _It did not bode well for them._

" _Well, I hope you have enjoyed my hospitality" The Demon chuckled, a dark echoing laugh behind her black iron helmet "I am Apollyon, Commander of the Blackstone Legion"_

 _The Demon cast her arm around, indicating the keep "This place was once known as Castle Kerak, now, I call it my proving ground. You will be the first to test it. Be proud"_

 _The Demon waved her hand and a few black iron soldiers came in carrying sacks. Some went past them into the keep proper or into the towers. One however stopped in front of them and upturned the two sacks they were holding._

 _She felt the girl in her arms shift and she held tighter. Both their stomachs growled in unison. Them and all the children around._

 _One of the sacks held food. Some bread, cheese and dried meat and the sight of it was enough to remind them of what they lacked._

 _The other sack held weapons. Daggers, swords and axes._

 _A cold shiver worked its way down her spine and clawed at her heart as she realised that there was much, much more of the latter than the former. In fact, it looked like there was only enough food to feed barely a handful of the children gathered here and that was if you stretched it._

" _There is food enough for three days inside the keep" Apollyon said "But" she let out a dark chuckle "Only for one of you"_

 _Nervous whimpers and outright tears greeted that statement._

" _In three days the gates will open again and anyone left alive will be inducted into my ranks as my Harbinger of a new age" She looked between them "Only the one with the right instincts will survive"_

 _Somehow, she could imagine the Demon was grinning underneath her black helmet._

" _When you first saw me I asked you all the same question: Are you a wolf, or a sheep? Now is your chance to answer"_

 _Another wave of her arms and the black iron soldiers began to pull children apart from the group and make them choose a weapon from the pile. Then they were given a morsel of food and took off running in every direction._

" _Psst" the black haired girl in her arms called to her "When we get our weapons, let's head to the tower behind us"_

" _What?"_

 _What about everyone else? She couldn't possibly mean to play into this could she?_

 _But they were separated before she could speak, the smaller girl taken away to pick up a dagger._

 _She was the last to take a weapon, a longsword that felt fairly balanced and wasn't chipped._

 _She looked around her. There were two other children left in the courtyard, both boys with one older than the other and looking enough alike that they were probably brothers. The older one was comforting the younger one who was crying and shaking._

 _Under the watching eyes of the black iron soldiers and the Demon, she extended her hand to them, gathered herself and managed a shaky smile._

" _Do you need help?"_

* * *

The return to Starfall was no less filled with anticipation than the journey to the Tower, Elia felt. Lord Stark had made all haste and worked Lord dustin's horse to exhaustion but in doing so he managed to return in time to save the horse's master, at least for a time. The maester of Starfall, Darion Flowers, had brought with him better equipment and prevented Lord Dustin's gradual decline, doing enough to keep him stable to reach Starfall. He also did the same to Ser Arthur.

When he saw Ash, he assumed she had already died and proclaimed it nothing short of a miracle that she still managed to draw breath. Not that Elia could blame him, she herself was inclined to believe in divine intervention whenever it concerned her Warden. Darion re-applied bandages and gave aid to staunch the Warden's bleeding though he noted that Ash's blood was particularly thick, unnaturally so, which played to their benefit as it had already begun to clot around the smaller wounds. However she sustained enough deep gouges, particularly from the deep stab wounds to her side and the cut that cleaved her collar and shoulder, that bleeding internally remained a concern.

Elia wiped the sweat from Ash's forehead in an effort to make herself feel useful.

It was a futile effort, but she had to try, to do _something_ other than wring her hands in worry.

Ash was just such a paragon of strength and steadfastness that Elia did not even consider the possibility that she might falter, even against the Sword of the Morning. She was just so used to the Warden triumphing against her opponents that she foolishly, stupidly forgot that those opponents were bandits and in the relief of returning to Dorne, reuniting with her best friend and considering the prospect of heading home at last, she all but assumed that Ser Arthur was on the same level.

What a fool she had been.

 _I should have argued farther, I didn't_ think!

She was still trying to process the whole debacle, asking and berating herself over and over, why, why, why?

She had an inkling that Arthur would not have found Ned agreeable and would have been downright hostile despite their similarities, Lord Stark had after all bedded his sister without marriage and Elia had a sneaking suspicion as to why her lady-in-waiting suddenly had to return home shortly after Harrenhal. Yet she assumed the survival of her son would have been enough to staunch his anger. Thinking more about the issue, Elia slapped her forehead again as a well of frustration surged inside her.

She had not counted on the strength of his friendship to her dead husband, nor the influence of the ever loyal Ser Gerold would of had in months of isolation. The White Bull had served for a very long time and remained the most loyal of all of Aerys' Kingsguard, to question that service would have made it void, worthless. She had no doubt that that he would have served the Mad King to the end, if only to justify his own actions. Which, in a way, he did. Such a man conversing with Ser Arthur for months on end would have certainly imprinted upon him such notions.

Elia sighed, brushing sweat from Ash's brow.

"You're still here, at least" she whispered to the Warden "I pray you stay for a while longer"

* * *

 _It was night on the second day and she felt the ever present hunger more keenly. It gnawed at her stomach and made her sick. It sapped her strength so much that she had to drag her sword around it felt so heavy. It also made thinking so very, very difficult, as if her thoughts were like thick gruel. Every moment she stopped to catch her breath was a moment to pass into sweet oblivion but they woke each other up and forced each other to move on every time it happened. They all knew if you fell asleep you were not going to wake up again._

 _She had thought the journey here was bad, but at least then they had a half-meal a day. Now, she had only eaten a piece of torn bread for the entire day. Not that anyone else was any better._

 _The smaller girl, Anna, had had two portions. The young boy, Bethlan, three. His older brother, Orland, had given his portion to the younger. All they had left was a tiny piece of bread and a chunk of cheese that was so small Bethlan could cover it up with one palm. Those they were saving for tomorrow._

 _She eyed the bloody dagger Anna was holding, remembering even through blurred thoughts how they got their food in the first place. They had started off only scaring the other children into giving up their portions, after her attempts to convince them to join failed. Orland had said these were the rougher children they were dealing with, but she did not know the truth of that statement at the time. Then she saw the dead bodies and understood._

 _They settled down for the night in a corner of 'their' tower, a place where none of the other remaining children dared approach, catching on pretty quickly that they worked together. She would have suggested a fire, if they had the know-how. Or the energy._

 _She glanced over to the brothers and was worried to see Bethlan slumped over Orland, seemingly unmoving. The younger boy had been struggling the greatest out of the four of them and it was an unsaid thing that he may not survive to the next day. Orland and her tried to give him the rest of their food but he stubbornly refused, saying he could handle it. Anna had been livid at the suggestion as well so they reluctantly dropped the issue._

 _She cleared her thoughts though, she had a different matter to address._

" _Anna"_

 _The smaller girl looked to her, cradling her dagger._

 _She had been thinking how to approach this subject since the incident happened and decided she neither had the energy nor inclination to be delicate._

" _Why did you kill him?"_

 _Anna narrowed her eyes in confusion "Because, he would have killed us"_

 _She remembered, even through the thick cloud of hunger, the shaking boy they found earlier that day who had been crying over a dead body, a bloodied sword on the ground near his feet, next to a pile of vomit._

 _She wanted to help. He so clearly needed help._

 _So she spoke to him, called to him, trying to speak in her mother's soft voice that calmed anyone down whether they were angry or sad._

 _And it was working. He was coming to. He would join, they would all share. The fifth member, another to survive with them._

 _Then a dagger had been shoved through his back, right into his heart._

 _She saw in her mind's eye Anna stood behind him, nodding to her._

 _She shook her head, clearing the memory and focusing on the present._

" _He wasn't going to"_

" _How would you know? He already did"_

 _She shook her head, certain of her answer "He wouldn't. He was talking to me, coming over to us"_

" _So he could stab you easier!" Anna shouted, looking angry. "Besides, we can't handle another mouth to feed!"_

" _We could! All we have to do is survive, we don't need to fight each other!"_

" _Enough!" Orland didn't shout but his voice was firm nonetheless "We cant fight over this. What's done is done" He have Anna a brief look, narrowing his eyes "But we got this far by working together. If we get enough people, the others may not even want to fight anymore"_

 _Anna turned her nose up at that and looked away from them all._

 _Tensions simmered in the small corner of the tower but it was not long before they dissipated. They were far too hungry to focus on anything else._

 _Soon enough they turned in for the night._

 _But she couldn't sleep, despite the lethargy the hunger brought. So she dragged herself to lay next to Anna and draped an arm around her._

 _Anna grumbled but otherwise gave no complaint._

" _M'sorry" she mumbled tiredly._

" _Mmh"_

 _It was silent for a while, then Anna spoke up "Why'd you talk to him?"_

 _She hardly had to think on her answer "My mum said to have hope"_

 _The silence stretched on again but she felt Anna still had something to say._

 _She was right._

" _My mum died when I was born. My da blames me for it. Beat me for it"_

 _She blew a breath of air into Anna's hair "M'sorry"_

 _Anna shifted slightly, shuffling closer "Not your fault"_

 _Her nose was buried in Anna's hair which was ragged and dirty as the rest of her. Not that she was any better._

" _I always wanted a sister" She did not know why she said those words but it felt right to say. Besides, it was true. She had had so many brothers and it sometimes felt strange being the only girl, aside from her mother but she didn't count._

 _Anna only shuffled that bit closer._

 _Eventually, both fell asleep._

* * *

Ashara held Rhaenys close, kissing the little girl's forehead and stroking her beautiful silver hair. The little princess had cried herself to sleep a while ago but she couldn't help but hold on and comfort the distraught girl. After all Rhaenys was her daughter in all but blood, she had helped raise the girl as Elia's lady-in-waiting ever since her birth and seeing her miserable like this tugged at her heartstrings.

She sighed, burying her nose in Rhaenys' hair, her thoughts drifting.

"You could of had a playmate, a lady-of-waiting to you like I was to your mother" she whispered "Oh, you would have been great friends. But that will not be so my precious"

She kissed Rhaenys' forehead again and forced herself to think on other things. Her melancholy could and did run deep during some days but she could not add to her surrogate daughters' worries, nor to the girl's mother. They both had enough on their plate as it was.

She turned her gaze to the bed in front of her, upon which lay the source of Rhaenys' worries, the bruised and battered form of Lady Ash.

When the woman had been brought in she thought it was her corpse that was carried through the gates but for the frantic hurrying of Darion to bring the body to a bed in a clean room. Elia had told her to keep Rhaenys away but by then it was too late for the girl had been drawn to the courtyard and recognized the tattered purple silk around her Warden's arm. Ashara had never heard the girl scream so loudly. It was so loud it pierced the ears of everyone in the courtyard and she was sure the fishermen at the docks heard it too. The little princess had been so inconsolable, a wild thrashing thing, crying, begging and demanding to be close to Lady Ash that she had to be held down and milk of the poppy administered to calm her.

When Arthur had been brought in Elia needed to console _her_.

Her brother, dutiful, strong and kind Arthur came through the gates of his home maimed, having been bested in combat, by a woman no less!

She would have laughed if she hadn't collapsed into her Lady's arms, shaking at how close he had come to death.

But her brother was alive just as Elia had promised and she was so, so glad of that fact. She did not know what she would have done if she got her brother killed.

 _I have my brother, yet Ned lost his sister. Now Rhaenys may lose her 'Visenya'. There has been far too much tragedy since Harrenhal_. She thought sadly.

The door opened and Elia walked in looking a little more fresher, evidently having washed up. She smiled at Ashara and at the little girl on her lap. She could tell it was a tired smile.

Ashara handed Rhaenys over to the other woman who took a seat next to Ash's bed.

"Thank you for caring for her" Elia said "I know you wish to see your brother. Maester Darion has just finished tending to him and is calling your Lord brother, join them"

Ashara smiled and embraced her friend. "Thank you. You must sleep soon, it has been a trying time for all of us. The guests rooms are still prepared for you"

Elia nodded "I will take my little one and myself to bed soon. Just...give us a moment, with Lady Ash"

Ashara squeezed her Lady's shoulder in sympathy and, bidding Elia goodnight, left the room, intent to see how well Arthur was fairing.

* * *

 _It was the sudden jolt to her stomach that woke her, a sudden piercing cold_ inside _her body that should not have been there._

 _Suddenly it was hard to breath as something pressed down on her throat, trying to crush it._

 _It was a struggle, but she managed to open her eyes and saw black hair covering her vision._

 _Anna was on top of her._

 _She held the dagger that was forced in her belly._

 _Her forearm pinned her throat._

 _For a moment, a brief, blissful moment, she thought it was a terrible nightmare._

 _Hot, salty tears dripped from the smaller girl's eyes onto her face and she knew then it was real._

" _Im sorry" Anna whispered._

 _She couldn't move, far too weak and getting weaker still. It was impossible to think and black spots began to fill her vision._

" _Im so sorry" Anna whispered again, face scrunched up in a truly miserable expression as she looked her in the eyes._

 _She managed out a choked gasp before all she saw was black._

 _It was sometime later when she came to, coughing and sputtering and breathing in lungfuls of air._

" _Shhh, breathe, breathe" someone was saying to her._

 _Instinct made her crawl away but her attempts only made her collapse on the floor._

" _Careful now, just stay still and get your breath back"_

 _She managed to do just that, drool leaking out of her gasping mouth. She was brought to a sitting position and her chin raised by a leather gloved finger, forcing her to look up. Through her addled brain and blurred eyes she could only make out a black iron helmet underneath a hood. However the eye slits were wide enough and she was close enough for her to see the brown eyes behind the helmet._

" _Come on now, you need to stand up. I've risked a lot doing this"_

" _Hnggg…" She croaked out._

" _Here" the person wrapped her fingers around a pommel "Up. You have to get up. They will bury you alive if you stay sitting"_

 _She struggled to stand even when using her sword as a crutch and inching herself up the wall. Twice she slumped back down but the person encouraged her to stand or she would die._

 _She did not want to die._

 _Eventually she found her feet, standing on shaky legs._

 _The person pressed something to her lips and she felt the cool liquid hit her tongue._

" _Drink up"_

 _The water was heavenly. It was clean and fresh and had an herbal taste to it. So, so different from the dirty puddle water she had been surviving on thus far. However it was agonisingly slow to come to her and when she focused her eyes she saw the person was gripping the neck of the bottle, allowing only drips to trickle through._

 _She whined._

 _The person shook her head "Any more will upset your stomach, maybe even kill you". The waterskin was pulled back and she mustered enough desperate strength to swipe for it, though she missed and nearly stumbled to the ground again._

" _That's enough for now. You need to get out of here" The person grabbed her shoulders and turned her to the door, gently pushing her on. "Go"_

 _She ambled forward aimlessly, dragging her sword, planting it on the ground and dragging herself along._

 _Scrape. Shuffle. Scrape. Shuffle. Scrape. Squelch._

 _Something soaked through her sandals, liquid seeping between her toes._

" _Dont look down" The person said._

 _She looked down._

 _Orland's lifeless eyes stared back at her._

 _She stumbled over, her sword clattering to the ground._

 _The person cursed and tried to get her to grab hold of her sword again but she was on her hands and knees, staring at Orland and his slit throat, at the blood flowing around him._

" _Wh...Wha….What…" She struggled to from the words, taking a moment to swallow "What...happened?"_

 _The person slipped the pommel underneath her hand and closed her fingers around it again "The other girl tried to take the rest of your food. She wasn't quiet enough, woke this one up" she explained "They had a fight, she won"_

 _But...but...why…_

" _Come on" The person urged "Up, you HAVE to get up"_

" _Bethlan...Where...Bethlan?" She slowly turned her head around, trying to find the younger boy but the person caught her chin again._

" _He didn't wake up" She was pulled to an upright position "You'll be like them if you don't stand up so come on"_

 _It was so hard. She thought...she thought...she couldn't think. It was all too much. She let go of the pommel and just sat there, staring vacantly at the door that looked so far away._

 _It would be fine if she just sat here, right? It was all just too hard._

 _Too much. Too much._

 _A leather hand gently took hold of her cheek "Come on. If you give up now everything that you've fought for, everything that you've done, everyone that's already died, all of that would be meaningless"_

 _The person cupped her face with both hands when she didn't reply, or even move "Did you hear me? Everything that's been done here would mean nothing. No, worse, it would mean that Apollyon won. She would get a mangy bitch that would kill over the barest scraps" The person shook her head "I saw what you did on the first day. You didn't run, you didn't go off on your own, no. You made a pack. Someone like you, you are needed. You can't die here forgotten"_

 _Was it all worth it though? She failed, she couldn't stop this, couldn't bring any more together._

 _The person patted her cheek "Please, stand up. Apollyon will kill all that is good in this world and cast it in darkness,_ someone _like you needs to live. Please, you have to stand"_

 _Cast it it darkness? Is this what her mother talked about? Is this what her words meant?_

 _Suddenly the person embraced her, whispering to her ear "Please, I can't stay here any longer. You have to do this. You must" The pommel was pressed to her palm again and the eyes that looked at her through the slits were begging "Please. Give us hope. Give me hope"_

' _Have hope' Her mother's voice filtered to her ears 'Wherever you go, whatever you do'_

 _She closed her hand around the pommel and forced herself up._

 _The person took a step back, a relieved sigh escaping her. "Thank you, and good luck" Then they vanished, running up the tower until their footsteps stopped echoing._

 _She looked at the door, the light filtering through illuminating the dark tower, and made her way outside._

 _The light blinded her for a moment but she adjusted quickly. At the other end of the castle's courtyard were the large wood gates which were still closed shut. A small form, made all the more miniscule by the imposing gatehouse, was beating on the base of the gate._

 _Anna._

 _She ambled along still feeling weak, using her sword to drag herself towards the gate but she kept on going. She had to._

 _As she got closer she spotted a body of a boy that had not been there yesterday, blood still flowing out from underneath him, filtering through the cracks between the cobblestone._

" _Open the gate! Open the gate!" Anna was shouting hoarsely, her voice like a creaking door "Im the only one left, open the gate!"_

 _She passed the body of the boy and Anna heard her scraping across the ground for she stopped banging on the door to look over her shoulder._

 _Anna's bloodstained face contorted into an expression of horrified shock and surprise. "You! You cant...you cant be real. You cant be alive!" She shook her head, black hair flying and droplets of blood spraying out. "No, no, no, no!"_

 _She dragged herself closer, her sword scraping against the stone._

" _Get away!" Anna yelled at her, brandishing a bloody dagger "Fuck off!"_

 _Scrape. Shuffle. Scrape. Shuffle._

 _Anna's eyes widened even more. With all the blood dripping off of her hair and face she looked wild and crazed._

 _She inched closer._

 _Anna roared, voice breaking in the process, as she lunged with eyes closed and dagger raised high._

 _She leaned back, summoning her strength to haul her sword up and point it at the smaller girl._

 _Anna smashed into her sending her on the ground flat on her back._

 _She looked up, shaking the dizziness away._

 _Anna had impaled herself on the sword._

 _The length of steel had pierced through the girl's stomach and burst out the other side. Anna stared at it for a moment, in utter disbelief, before collapsing on the ground._

 _She crawled over to the smaller girl._

 _Anna's eyes flicked to her for a brief moment, light straw brown meeting her own dark forest green._

 _Then Anna drew her last breath and her eyes closed to the world._

 _She did not know how long she sat there, staring at Anna's lifeless body but she was startled to awareness when the gate opened with a loud groan._

 _Apollyon was on the other side, mounted atop a black horse._

 _Around her were other black-iron clad warriors wearing the black and orange colours of the Blackstone Legion. She saw a familiar helmet amongst them._

" _Well, that was unexpected" Apollyon began, sounding genuinely surprised._

 _She only stared at the woman._

 _Apollyon snorted "It matters little. You have survived" She extended her hand "Welcome to the Blackstone Legion, little Wolf"_

* * *

The Warden shook and twisted in her sleep, sweat raining from her pores. She moaned and groaned, gasped and huffed until a cold wind blew through the window.

It was like being hit with a spike of ice and she jolted awake.

* * *

 **A/N: Whew. Well, that took a while didnt it?**

 **I do apologise for that, Andromeda had taken up a lot of my free time and my essay most of the rest but here it is, eventually.**

 **This chapter was meant to expand on Ash's background more and get a good grip as to what she went through, at least partly, in her old life. It also gives a better look at Apollyon. This is not Canon to the For Honor story however, it is something I came up on my own and happens years before the events of the game. Apollyon as far as is known didnt actually gather children and have them fight each other and choose the winner to be part of her army, though I feel its something she might have done.**

 **Also I must admit while it may look like im deus exing things by using the "healing potion", which I probably am lets be honest, this is an ability in the Warden's kit in the game.**

 **Wardens get the option of having three charges to partially restore health though it's not specified as a potion, just something the Warden can do. Also, I kinda wrote myself into a corner with the first mention of this back in Chapter 2. Back then I wrote that it messes with your mind and acts like a psychotic of some sort which was a cool sounding thing to write and was a vaguely believable reason that Ash hadn't yet given it to Elia but I really shouldn't have done that since I feel it deviates far too much from the original ability. Though I can't say it hasn't been helpful, so go past me?**

 **Also, Ash's particularly thick blood is another ability, this one passive and it's meant to stop regular bleed effects, so essentially make Nobushi's cry and annoy Peacekeepers. In this case since I based Arthur around a Peacekeeper, which is a class that has really annoying bleed attacks, so it allows her to survive much longer than any 'normal' opponent.**

 **Ash has these abilities because im trying to keep the For Honor style combat which is why nameless mooks get murdered in droves and there are 'hero' enemies.**

 **Which must also have their own abilities I realise now since Ash has hers.**

 **Anyway...Thank you all for reading!**

 **PS: Updates will likeley continue to be low for the month as I do my essay. For those that wonder why it takes a month for me to write an essay, its a 5000 word one due in early May. It's also for a Masters History Course so for every word written I have to read like ten or twenty. Also im really lazy.**


	8. Chapter 8- Dayne

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews, favourites and follows! Hundreds now follow this story, hundreds! That is like, many dozens, a huge lot, or lots of people.**

* * *

Elia brought the silver goblet to her lips and drank, closing her eyes in bliss as the cool wine flowed down her throat. Smooth, bursting with a fruity flavour, accompanied by a subtle sweetness and maintaining a solid bite even when watered down. She had grown with Dornish Red and whatever second class pretender the Redwynes peddled could never match to the Dornish drink that embodied the very land in which its grapes and fruits were grown.

She put the goblet down, the vessel so cleanly polished she could see her own reflection staring back at her.

"Refreshing, my lady?" Ashara giggled from behind her.

Elia smiled fondly, feeling the woman's fingers weave through her dark strands of hair and the pull of a comb following. "Yes"

They fell into silence and she tapped the silver goblet with a slender finger.

Ting. Ting. Ting. Ting.

"What will you do now my lady?"

Ting.

The Princess sighed heavily and downed the goblet in one.

"That is the question, is it not? What is to be done now?" Elia lamented.

Ashara worked a stubborn knot in Elia's hair. "I am sure you are not lacking for ideas my lady"

Elia breathed a sardonic laugh "Curse and spit on the watery grave my foolish, dead husband?"

Ashara chuckled, working the knot free. "A good place to start as any. And afterwards?"

Elia beckoned with her hand and a waiting servant moved to refill her goblet, lifting a lavish silver pitched encrusted with sapphires and amethysts, shaped in the figure of a swan. From its open mouth the Dornish wine poured to her cup and once filled she waved the servant back and took another sip.

"Afterwards? Well, Lord Stark recommends I flee to Essos for King Robert's wrath is fierce indeed, not that I needed any more confirmation of that fact" Elia rubbed her shoulder, feeling the scars there. "Doubtless the Lannisters intended to murder my children and myself on his wishes"

"Mhhm" Ashara placed her hand over her lady's and gently pushed it off of her shoulder "You have considered the option then?"

The Princess looked into her cup, idly swirling the rich led liquid "Yes" her voice slipped into a whisper "I know little of military affairs but I do know that Dorne has lost its army and there are fewer men here than the last time I visited. Though, conversations with Lord Stark have been enlightening. The only armies that remain raised are those of the Stormlands and Westerlands with all others returning home. Apparently all think the war won and see no threat in Dorne"

The corner of Ashara's lips turned "Then they are blind"

Elia snorted, then sipped her wine "Only in one eye, but the fact is the war is over. The more pressing issue is the fate of my children. We may well stay safe in Dorne, but, our presence here will undoubtedly hamper any attempt to play the Game. Few will want to risk Robert's wrath and four of the Seven Kingdoms are his allies and I doubt Robert himself will rest idly on the Iron Throne while my children still live to threaten him"

Ashara finished combing Elia's hair, biting her lip is consideration. Elia turned, curious as to the silence. "Your thoughts?"

"I have an...idea" Ashara proposed carefully. Elia raised a curious brow. "Ned is an integral ally to Robert, doubtless he will have Robert's confidence and ear. If, say, I were to be his...assistant then Dorne will have a presence in court"

It took Elia a moment to think of a reply to that "Ashara...You cannot mean to be a _concubine?_ "

Ashara blinked, then a slow smile made its way across her face but it was not one of happiness. She laughed mirthlessly "Elia, my lady, you should already know I am not exactly the 'perfect' bride"

Elia sighed, downing her drink again and turned to face Ashara "I have had my suspicions but, Ashara, he is already married"

"We promised each other under the Harrenhal Heart Tree"

Elia blinked, once again caught off guard. She could only manage an "Oh" at the sudden input.

The silence that passed between them was an awkward one as Ashara poured herself a drink, eyes watering slightly and avoiding Elia's own. "Before all this horrid business, I thought I would be with Ned going up North and being a Lady of my own keep, married to a man of honour and substance who treats me with respect, kindness and love. You and I both know the nature of men. Ned showed me there were men of honour"

Elia found it difficult to say what she wanted to in a way that did not offend her best friend. She understood Ashara, truly she did and she loved the woman as a sister but this...this was…

"And what of Lady Catelyn? You would subject the woman to this...this…"

"Disgrace?" Ashara supplied with false calm, sipping to hide her trembling lips.

Elia grit her teeth "...Yes"

"What of her? We both have known mistresses, she would expect her husband to have his dalliances"

Elia palmed her face, a cocktail of emotions brewing within her "You say this after you just extolled Lord Stark's virtues?"

Ashara looked out towards the flowers in the garden they occupied "She does not know him as I do, will not love him as I did"

"So you just...brush her aside then? You expect Lord Stark to just do that as well?"

Amethyst eyes narrowed down on her as Ashara turned her head quickly, her expression breaking down from the cool mask she had barely kept going "I gave him my virtue" her voice was low but the intensity rippled out "I gave him my love, I bore him a child and I told him where Arthur was. I will NOT be cast aside"

Her hands trembled, shudders traveling up her arms to her shoulders as tears slowly fell but yet she kept her voice low and intense, speaking through gritted teeth.

"If I remain here I will have nothing. You yourself said, with your children alive associating with Dorne will not be looked upon favourably. With my virtue gone so does the chance for a good match. At best, Dorren will have to pay a handsome dowry as an enticement, one we cannot afford and likely to a family that will bring him little of value"

"But you are the most beautiful woman in the whole of the Seven Kingdoms! Men still fawn over you, loss of virtue be damned" Elia argued.

"Beauty fades" Ashara said with stone cold certainty "What will happen then? I will be cast aside in my own keep, my husband finding someone younger while I sit, doing nothing but rotting away"

Elia sucked in a breath, had more wine poured and drank from the cup to stifle her groan.

"Why do you defend her anyway?" Ashara pressed "She was technically your enemy and you hardly know the woman, while I have served as your lady in waiting for many years"

Elia groaned anyway "I defend her because I do not wish for you to be the 'second woman'. That marriage will not be annulled, Hoster Tully is enough of a grump to make certain it was consummated before allowing them to go to war. I do not want to imagine you in the North lonely and freezing as you go to a cold bed every night hoping for a visit. You will have little station in the North and you will live in Winterfell with a Lady of the Keep that will likely wish your death and may want to expedite the process!"

Elia let out a shaky breath, massaging her temples but her features softened as drew her hand away and looked at Ashara's eyes "When Rhaegar gave those blue roses to Lyanna Stark I have never felt so humiliated in my entire life. Our marriage was not one of love at that point that much you know but when he did that, so openly, I felt as if I had been nothing more than refuse, thrown and discarded without care. Even worse when he left me and the children alone in the capital." She shuddered at the memory "If, and that is a big If, Lord Stark even decides to bring you along ONE of you will feel as I did. I do not wish that on Catelyn Tully for she has done nothing wrong and especially not on you"

Ashara sniffled, wiping a tear away and doing her best to regain her composure "Thank you for your concern" she gently took hold of Elia's hand "But what you say will happen if I do not go. At least with Ned, I know he will love me and provide however much he can. Besides, he will hardly return to Winterfell now. Doubtless Robert will give him a position in the Small Council, they are so close perhaps even he will even make him Hand so in all likelihood he will remain in the capital. You have journeyed with him here, spoken with him. Do you honestly think he can survive that snake pit?"

Elia sighed and shook her head. "He would be eaten alive"

Ashara nodded "He will need an experienced hand to guide him"

"You"

"Indeed. With me being close I will have a chance to observe the goings of the court and act as an ambassador for Dorne"

"And you will be suspected of being a spy and a sympathiser"

She shrugged "I will be under Lord Stark's protection in a place I know very well"

Elia enclosed Ashara's hands in hers "You will not budge from this course?"

Ashra nodded, expression resolute. A contrast to Elia's worry "My future, the one I can make something of, is by Ned's side. Besides" she softened her voice, expression kindly "I...can also claim to be Jaehaerys' mother"

Elia slumped at the mention of the baby, a breath escaping her. Ashara offered a comforting squeeze with her hand. "Only a handful know of his existence. The Northmen are loyal to Ned. If I go with Ned and claim Jaehaerys as my own Dorren will be silent on the matter and Arthur will as well. Rumours already abound before I left the capital, there would be no suspicion by anyone on the matter of Jaehaerys' heritage if I claimed him. I can even take the nursemaid as my own"

The Princess of Dorne gave a sound that was crossed between a sigh and groan "Jaehaerys...Jaehaerys...Jaehaerys...Why, Rhaegar? Even from the grave you give me grief" She growled, taking a deep breath and recollecting herself with more wine. "To be honest Ashara, I do not know what to do with Jaehaerys. If things were as they should be he would be a potential threat to Aegon's claim. A Blackfyre reborn"

"Yet things are not as they should be"

"No" Elia shook her head "No they are not. A part of me thinks that this was a ploy by Lord Stark, why he insisted so strongly that I disinherit my children and leave for Essos"

Elia cut off Ashara as the latter was about to say something "But he could not have known this and he is entirely too...honest in his countenance for such plotting. No, as it stands I can hardly think about Jaehaerys' potential as a threat when my own children are in danger and..." She paused, hesitant for a moment but pressed on "...and...I may even follow Lord Stark's advice"

Ashara blinked, now the one caught off guard. Elia managed a smile at that "The board has been cleared and Dorne stands alone. This is not the time to press claims, it is the time to rest, recover, to hide and watch the shadows for a flash of steel. As it stands Suspear has more ties to to the Free Cities than to any of the Kingdoms. Our friends there can care for me without burdening Dorne. My concern now is my children's safety"

She breathed a sigh. "Besides, though it is unfair of me to judge that babe I would rather not think of him. He reminds me of Harrenhal and all the mistakes in that gods damned tourney"

Ashara rubbed her shoulder comfortingly "Ned will never let his heritage be known, especially not to Robert. You have seen him, he hardly leaves Jaehaerys' side. Better he be known a Stark born of a Dayne and have a mother that whatever Ned is thinking of using as an excuse"

"You would so readily adopt this boy that is not your own?" Elia said after a long moment of silence passed.

Ashara put a hand to her stomach "Yes"

Elia looked towards the blooming flowers.

"I will bring this up with Doran, when I get to Sunspear" she said eventually, turning to look at the great beauty "Since you so insist"

They both gave a small, tired smile.

* * *

Ashara breathed a heavy sigh as she left the garden, feeling very drained and tired after the emotional conversation. A large part of her felt incredibly guilty in exploiting her dearest friend so, while Elia was a turbulent ball of emotion and hardly rested but the part of her that played the Game noted it only as a pragmatic move, something that needed to be done to secure her place in the order of things. It would only have been a harder struggle if Elia was hale and hearty and not dealing with a cartload of stress.

At least, that was what she told herself as she stalked off to find the other piece to the puzzle she was completing.

She found him easily enough, resting in the nursery next to a finely crafted crib with dazzling designs carved into the wood of stars and wolves. She smiled at the sight of it.

"Ashara" He said tiredly, roused from his light slumber. "Er, sorry. My Lady"

Ashara giggled, approaching him with a slight more sway to her hips that normal. She pulled up a seat next to him and placed a hand on his "Ned, I would have thought we knew each other well enough to be past formalities"

"Ah" She was a little happy when he was slow to move his hand from hers "I...Yes, of course Ashara"

She smiled at him, then turned to look at the crib where, through the dark redwood bars, Jaehaerys slept soundly on after having his meal from the nursemaid.

"He is a quiet child?" She asked with fondness in her tone.

Ned nodded with smile of his own. "Well behaved for a babe that has only recently been born" Then his face fell as he likely remembered his dear sister.

Ashara put her hand on his knee "I am truly sorry for your loss Ned. I regret I never spoke to her when I had the chance, I would have loved to meet her"

There was clear pain in his Stark grey eyes. _He has aged so much since we last met_ Ashara noted with sadness as she watched him closely.

"She said the same of you" He said eventually, doing an impressive job of keeping it together.

She squeezed his knee "Do you know much about caring for babes Ned?"

He blinked at the change in conversation, then shook his head "Uh, no. I cannot say I do"

"Well, then let me tell you..."

* * *

Conversing with Ashara did much to lighten Eddard's mood though the topic of conversation was one which Eddard was not well versed in. They chatted for a long length of time in the nursery, mostly Ashara telling him of pregnancy, a woman's pains and experiences, things he did not know and really would rather not know but also of caring for children. She was well informed it appeared to his inexperienced mind which he was thankful for. Jahaerys' care was to be his responsibility now, he was too important to leave entirely to the care of nursemaids as any normal noble born child would be.

They talked, or more appropriately, Ashara lectured, until the sun began to set and the sky turned from clear blue to a beautiful, misty orange. Ashara seemed surprised that they had been speaking that long and, with a request he could not deny (and after making sure Jaehaerys was attended to by one of his men and Wylla) she asked him to accompany her to a place within Starfall.

They weaved through the castle's beautiful halls, the heat cooled by the setting sun and the sea air that flowed in, guided by well designed architecture that funneled it through the corridors. Starfall was so different from Winterfell in this regard and many others, so...opposite. Open and airy to Winterfell's closed and airless corridors. Bright, almost shining, white sandstone to Winterfell's solid gray rock. Freezing cold to stifling heat.

It made him feel all the more out of his depth, more homesick. He missed Winterfell's closeness, it's great roaring hearthfires and the people that huddled together in its great halls. The servants here had not stopped staring at him, whispering quietly when they thought he did not notice. Even now as they walked some were openly surprised.

But he could not return just yet. He needed to stay and get answers to pressing questions, he had a certain Warden to thank and frankly awe over and a thousand other conversations that needed to happen. He was no longer the spare, a little lordling free to do as he wished. He was the Warden of the North and within these halls was the last of the Targaryens, a Princess of Dorne and an illustrious noble House, all of which needed to be courted.

He felt the weight press on his shoulders even thinking about his title and the responsibilities it conveyed.

Thankfully, following Ashara, feeling her soft hand in his and smelling the hint of perfume helped him push such heavy thoughts way, for now.

They eventually reached their destination, the Godswood of Starfall. Ned could not help but be surprised. He eyed the great tree in the center of the small garden. Like most heart tree's south of the Neck the one in Starfall was an old oak. Strong, tall and healthy with a carved face but it was not a true heart tree, the title was reserved for the Weirwood's who had their faces carved by the Children of the Forest, not by men imitating their form. However he was still glad to find a little something that reminded him of home.

Ashara bid him to come sit with her at the base of the oak and he did so, leaning back against the trunk. Ashara did likewise, lifting her chin and taking a deep breath, coincidentally exposing her slender neck. Ned turned away, trying and failing to purge the memory of kissing that very same neck under a different heart tree.

"I came here often, after Harrenhal" Ashara began, looking up at the oak's leaves as the last rays of sun pierced through. "It gave me peace, hope. Reminded me of you" she smiled at him and Ned's heart clenched even as he tried to give a smile back.

"I also came here to relax after a long day. You can only stand on aching feet and feel bloated for so long before you go mad" she laughed.

Ned chuckled. He remembered, before his fostering, his father doing the same, spending long hours praying and contemplating in the godswood of Winterfell beneath the white branches and red leaves of the weirwood heart tree. He always said it helped him focus.

"I remember laying down on the soft grass and falling asleep. I napped here so often the maids prepared blankets and pillows!"

Ned could imagine the sight. Ashara on a blanket, eyes closed and expression relaxed as the sun shined overhead and the wind swept a cool breeze with her long, luscious black hair splayed out. Her lips would be parted, just the slightest, and curved into a hint of a smile. A true Princess, elegant even in sleep.

He swallowed and cleared his throat, and his thoughts, before the latter strayed further.

 _You are married you fool, to a woman who has beauty in her own right._ He reminded himself.

"Ned?"

Ned shook his head "Sorry, my mind wandered"

She smiled knowingly and he blushed. "Do you pray to the Old Gods?" He asked, eager to move the conversation onwards to any other topic.

Ashara's expression was complicated, a slight smile and pained eyes. "No, though I am not much of an ardent follower of the Faith either. I know only that gods can bless as much as they curse though we feel the latter far more than the former it seems, especially given events as of late"

Ned nodded, mood sombering quickly. "Indeed. Many prayers have been said the past year. I wonder how many were listened to?"

"What one prayer did you wish answered?" She asked suddenly, looking at him with focused interest.

It took him a while to reply "...That I could go back to Harrenhal, do things differently"

He felt her hand on his shoulder "Hopefully not too differently?" she whispered, drawing close.

His heart thumped a thunderous beat, body paralyzed. Ashara hovered close, so close her scent drifted to his nose. Their eyes met and he felt himself drowning in her deep, startling amethyst. He closed his eyes.

Amethyst changed to blue, dusky skin to white, deep black hair to red. Catelyn's face appeared in his mind, the day of their wedding, giving him a smile despite the nervousness she obviously felt.

He gasped, turning his head away. His lips suddenly felt very dry.

Ashara sighed and leaned her forehead on his shoulder. "You are still the man I love"

His chest tightened and he tried to quash the sudden rush of tears. "I am married, Ashara"

"It should have been me. It was going to be me"

Guilt, shame and a host of other emotions warred within him. "I am sorry"

"It is no fault of yours. You did what was asked of you. You are happy with her?"

He swallowed "...We hardly know each other, but we did our duties. Maybe, in time"

He felt her breath as she sighed, turning and laying her cheek on her shoulder as she looked at him "I envy her, marrying Eddard Stark"

He couldn't meet her eyes. After all this time he still did not know what she found in him that drew her so and he did not feel right to ask. "I am sorry" he repeated, at a loss of anything else to say.

She planted a kiss on his shoulder "I was so...excited. Even with what happened to Elia I left Harrenhal as giddy as can be. I was to be married, to a man of my own choice! Do you know how rare such a thing is?"

Ned kept silent.

"Even when Rhaegar went off being a complete and utter fool, I had reason to look forward" She placed her hand on her stomach, eyes going cloudy from tears.

Ned felt ice being dropped on him.

The conversations, Ashara's apparent knowledge of pregnancy and child rearing, her relaxing in the godswood. Even the little details like the nursemaids who gave him a curious look over their shoulders and the fully prepared nursery, ready to accept a babe.

He couldn't breath.

 _No…_

The shock must have shown on his face for Ashara pulled him into a tight embrace.

"I...How…" He struggled to find the words. What can one even say in such a situation? She hugged him tighter, putting herself on his lap and he embraced her on instinct, seeking that warm comfort for he suddenly felt very, very cold.

"It was a girl, a daughter, with little tufts of black hair and your grey eyes" Ashara sniffed, tears flowing freely. "She was going to be so beautiful"

"What...what happened" He felt compelled to ask.

Ashara sobbed into his shoulder taking in heaving breaths. He held her tighter.

"She...She…" Ashara gulped, voice shaking but she pressed on "Her cord was...was wrapped around her neck, when I gave birth. She couldn't breathe. My baby couldn't breathe and I could do nothing to help her!" Her momentary resolve crumbled and she let out a wailing cry into his shoulder ushering in a fresh wave of tears.

Ned hardly kept it together himself. The shock of it all was too much. He was frozen, mind and body struggling. Something rose up in his throat and he pushed it down. His tears flowed as freely as Ashara's as he stared emptily into the distance, unable to comprehend what he had just heard.

"I...I didn't know. Im...I am so sorry"

"I did not know what to do. I felt so alone. Dorren helped where he could but he could not understand. Elia was so far away and Arthur was so angry at you. I was lost. I thought so often of ending it all, of following my child so at least in death she may have a mother"

"I am so sorry" He buried his nose in her hair, pulling her closer. "If I known I would have come"

"I know" Her voice was muffled as she buried her face into the crook of his neck "I know"

They held each other. For how long Ned did not know nor did he keep track. It could have been minutes or hours but they sat there, leaning on the base of the great oak until their tears dried and their shaking subsided. Until every shred of energy left their bodies and they sat there, tired and spend, holding on for comfort.

"Ned?" Ashara asked tentatively, her voice rough and hoarse from crying.

"Yes?" Ned looked at her ash she pulled back slightly to look him in the eye.

"What are we going to do now?"

He closed his eyes and sighed "I dont know"

"We could run to Essos, just leave all this behind us and start afresh?"

For a moment Ned was taken aback but looking at her mischievous smile he breathed a sigh of relief "Oh, you jest"

Ashara laughed and slapped his shoulder playfully. "Oh, Ned"

He smiled but thoughts of the future brought back sobering reality "Truly, I do not know what I can do. But I wish to make this right" He steeled himself, drawing on the determination that made him cross the entirety of Westeros to find his sister.

"Through my negligence I have done you a great injustice" He said looking her in the eye "Please, if it is within my power to do so, I wish to help you"

She appeared taken aback by the declaration but soon enough she smiled and lunged at him with a hug, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "Ned" she breathed into his ear, relief palpable in her voice "I only want one thing, to be by your side again"

He sighed into her shoulder "My wife will not be pleased"

"Mistresses are not so unusual, she would know this. I wager she would even be prepared for it. Besides, what would she think when you came back to her with a child?"

Ned winced "She would not think highly of me"

"No, no she would not. If that is to be the case you may as well say I am the mother. No one would suspect a thing"

He was surprised "You would do that?"

She nodded "If you take me as your mistress and claim Jaehaerys your son he will be protected, as well as have a mother that will love him. I have been preparing for a child for a long time Ned. My future lies with you, ever since Harrenhal"

Ned swallowed. It was a difficult choice, the consequences harsh. On one hand take on Ashara and all but declare that Catelyn, innocent and kind Catelyn, was...inadequate. Not enough for him after they had already committed themselves to each other under the eyes of the gods. On the other hand, he would leave behind a woman that loved him and bore him a child and had suffered so much already.

 _Jon, what would have done? What would you say?_

He did not know what his mentor and father figure would have said as an answer. In the end it had to be him, his decision as Eddard Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North.

Lyanna's face appeared in his mind, exhausted, bloody and drenched in sweat _. "Take care of Jaehaerys"_ she said, labouring for breath " _Promise me Ned. Please, promise me you will care for him"_

He looked at Ashara and he saw the shadow of a child in her arms and he knew then what his decision would be.

* * *

Ash ran her hand, her left and currently only working hand, through Rhaenys' startling silver hair as the little girl snoozed by her bedside. She was a welcome sight and it lifted her heart to know that she was not alone in this foreign land after waking from that nightmare of a memory.

She could hardly remember what happened afterwards, only a robed man running around her and Elia's voice in her ear telling her to calm down. After something was forced down her throat she fell back to a thankfully dreamless sleep.

"She has not left your side since you first woke up" Elia said softly as she entered the room, a servant following behind with a tray of food. With a quick bow the servant left leaving the three of them in the room.

"She was disappointed she could not embrace me. Your...maestar was it? He expressedly forbid the action"

Elia pulled Rhaenys onto her lap as she sat on the chair "Yes, the whole castle heard I gather"

Ash smiled at that.

"Maester Daerion said your arm…"

Ash lifted her limp right arm "Is going to be disabled, for a while. He warned it may never regain feeling"

Elia swallowed, then shook her head "You are a walking miracle Ash, you will recover" she said resolutely.

Rhaenys chose that moment to stir awake, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. Then she started wriggling in Elia's lap. "Mama! Let me go! I have to-"

Ash reached out a hand to cup Rhaenys' cheek "Im here little one"

The girl's eyes widened, then watered as she buried her face into Ash' hand. "Mhmm mmm" She mumbled into Ash' palm.

Ash stroked her cheek with her fingers, ignoring the strain that was building in her shoulder just holding her arm up.

Elia gently put Rhaenys on the bed as the little girl nuzzled the Warden's palm, her eyes roving over the scars that marked Ash' exposed flesh, dressed as she was with only bandages wrapped around her breasts and a blanket covering all else.

"You will recover" Elia repeated.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that was the hardest chapter to write so far. I am not entirely confident in writing good dialogue, mix this with complex relationships and drama which I don't typically read and/or watch? Blegh.**

 **Anyway, this is essentially an Ashara chapter showing her employing her courtly skills and securing what she sees as her only bright option. It's partly a butterfly effect of Ash' actions and partly happened because I wanted it to. I only hope it wasn't too forced.**

 **Also, I do have to say I sympathise with Catelyn in the show. Her treatment of Jon lay between the extremes of fully legitimising a very real threat to your children's future or outright killing him. Her conversation with Jeyne Westerling showed her relationship with Jon very well I feel.** **All of her actions were based on her devotion to her family. She really did exemplify her family's words to a fault. It's just unfortunate that the Game does not reward those values.**

 **Saying this, now I go and put this whole headache on her lap. For there to be winners there have to be losers I suppose.**

 **Anyway, thank you all for reading! DO let me know what you think.**


	9. Chapter 9- Kisses and Goodbyes

**A/N: Woo! An update finally. As always, thank you all to those who reviews, favourited and followed. I am so happy that this story is as popular as it is, I really did not expect this kind of attention to a crossover fic. Or a fic that doesn't even have OTP's. It is fantastic, so thank you.**

* * *

Ash settled down on the soft grass with a quiet groan of relief, Rhaenys plopping down next to her. Nearby the servant who had followed them at a respectful distance, which still set Ash' instincts at edge and made her twitch for a weapon that wasn't there, placed a blanket on the ground in front of them and laid out their midday meal on silver platters. Cuts of smoked and honeyed ham with accompanying sauces, various cheeses both hard and soft, fresh fruits such as apricots, apples and pears, sweet dried dates and soft white bread and a hearty beef stew with vegetables, some of which she recognized. It was a meal fit for a king, or princess in this case.

Ash felt very out of place, which did not help her anxiety but Rhaenys' presence, especially her smile and the way she seemed to just fit into any social situation helped calm her nerves.

 _There is no danger here. You do not need your armour, nor a weapon_.

Her thoughts did not stop her from flinching when wind blew against her bare skin. She wore a white silk shirt which had apparently once belonged to a man and fine burgundy coloured leather breeches, which also belonged to a man. The servants had been insistent she wear a dress but there wasn't one her size so they had begrudgingly settled for providing her the clothing she had now.

The eyes drawing to her when they thought she wasnt looking also did not help her anxiety. She missed the feeling of a metal shell.

"Lady Ash!" Rhaenys cheerfully called presenting her with an apple, with a bite taken out of it "It's sweet, I tasted"

Anxiety falling, Ash couldn't help but smile, taking the offering and biting into it with a crunch. The little girl was right, it was sweet.

She hummed to show her pleasure and Rhaenys seemed content, nodding to herself and taking her own meal, going for the ham and sweet dates.

 _Figures she'd go for the stickiest combination_ Ash thought, idly observing the girl.

She watched as Rhaenys wolfed down her food, quaff her freshly squeezed orange juice and then proceed to repeat the process. Meanwhile Ash enjoyed the stew, the broth, soft vegetables and tender meat making it easy, and tasty, to eat which suited her sore body. When Rhaenys settled down she pulled the girl to her lap and wrapped an arm around her.

"Mhph?" Rhaenys looked up at her quizzically, a piece of ham hanging out of her lips.

Ash pushed it into her mouth with her little finger. "You haven't been sleeping"

Rhaenys swallowed, expression turning downcast. She said nothing, turning to lay her head on the Warden's shoulder. Ash felt her nod.

"Why?"

Rhaenys squirmed, burying her face into Ash's neck.

Ash gently drew circles on her back.

"I notice things" she said softly, thinking on how she would broach the subject "I felt how much you leant on me when we walked here, how you talked less than normal, how much you yawned, the dark circles under your eyes" she gently brushed off a layer of makeup which covered said circles "how you aren't as active as you normally are. Tell me little one, why do you not sleep?"

Rhaenys whined into her shoulder, a quiet, muffled, mewl. "I have nightmares" the little girl whispered. "Where I die. Over and over again, in the Red Keep. I beg for you but you're not there and I die and mama dies and Aegon dies and-"

Ash hugged her "Im here"

Rhaenys embraced the Warden. "You nearly died. I saw you when you came back. I thought you were dead"

Ash sighed into Rhaenys' hair "I am sorry for that"

There was little else she could say.

"Will you stay with me?" Rhaenys asked quietly.

Ash felt cold iron grip her heart. The words she wanted to say, that she would be with the princess she had grown so fond of, now and always, were a lie. She had been ignoring it, deluding herself that this new life was a chance to be different.

What a fool she had been.

She felt alien without a blade, incomplete outside of her armour. Her duel with the Sword of the Morning had reminded her that however far away she was from the Demon, she could not escape its influence. She had been shaped and forged by the will of Apollyon, thrown into the crucible of conflict and taught only one thing:

That her life was War.

The horrible, blood chilling truth was starting to dawn that peace was a terrifying prospect. That outside of the battlefield she knew nothing.

Even now, as her scars itched and her muscles ached to her bones she was restless. The bed was too soft, the food too rich and the there were far too many strangers. Elia was too busy doing whatever she did to be a source of familiar comfort. Even the Northmen were busy doing something around the nursery. Rhaenys was the only bright light which guided her lost ship but that only made her feel more guilty.

She couldn't lie to this girl that she had grown so fond of.

She couldn't keep looking at her and seeing what could have been.

Rhaenys didn't deserve that.

"Im fairly certain the good Maester advises you not to get out of bed Lady Ash"

Elia's voice cut through her thoughts and she was shaken out of her pause. The woman strode over to them, taking Rhaenys off her lap to clean up the girl's messy mouth. Said little girl was not all too happy about it with the way she fussed but the mother was experienced, keeping her hold.

Ash breathed a sigh of relief.

 _ **You cannot run forever**_

She twitched, grit her teeth and pressed her palm against her temple against the sudden, piercing migraine.

"Ash?" Elia and Rhaenys were on her in an instant, worry in their voice and faces.

"Im...fine" She grunted out but Elia was having none of it, snapping at a nearby waiting servant to fetch the maester. Rhaenys was helping her by pressing a cold goblet filled with ice to her head which helped soothe the ache.

"Here, lay down" Elia guided Ash onto her back, laying her head against a soft cushion. "Really Ash, you should be in bed"

The Warden groaned "I couldn't stay in that bed and the maester objected to me sleeping on the floor"

Elia sighed, pressing a cold wet cloth to Ash' forehead. "Of course"

Measter Darion arrived soon after, admonishing the Warden but admitted, with some reluctance, that the fresh air and sun would do her some good. He allowed her to stay on the condition that should she start feeling cold in her fingertips or toes she get back inside.

Rhaenys was quick to cover Ash in a blanket and plant herself by her side, offering her food and drink and acting as her 'nurse'. Ash's protests were turned aside, the girl grabbing hold of Ash's hand and not letting go. Elia meanwhile observed her with a keen eye.

On the grass, head laying against a small silk pillow, Rhaenys fussing over her, Ash tried not to think about the voice in her head. Nor the truth of its words.

* * *

Arthur scratched the itch on his chin and was frustrated when the itch did not abate. Then, looking down, he realised why.

His stump of an arm was waving uselessly in the air and the feeling of a hand that should have been there vanished. It left an unfamiliar, alien and uncomfortable emptiness.

Arthur sighed despondently, dropping his arm.

"None of that now" Ashara held his stump "Better that than your life"

Arthur swatted her hand away "What life it is now. A Kingsguard without a King, a Knight without a hand"

"Last I checked Aegon still suckles off his mother's teat and no one has stripped you of Knighthood"

Arthur ground his teeth "And a sister that sides with the man who dishonored her. Dishonored her family!"

Ashara took hold of his arm again with both hands, hugging it to her. "I go with the man I love, few can say the same" she said calmly.

Arthur tried to pull his arm away but Ashara kept a tight grip and eventually he gave up, sighing and collapsing onto the bed he was laying on.

Silence passed between the siblings and for all that Arthur felt about her decisions, he could not say that Ashara's presence was unwelcome.

"You spoke with Lady Elia earlier" Ashara started.

Arthur nodded. Ashara squeezed his arm. "About what?"

He stared up at the ceiling, silent for a moment. "She wanted answers" he eventually admitted "Wanted to know why I did what I did".

Ashara 'hmmed', softly stroking his arm. "What did you say?"

"That I swore Rhaegar as my King, to follow his last command"

"Which was?"

"To defend his love and their child"

"I doubt she took that well"

Arthur laughed a laugh without mirth "No, she did not"

Ashara swatted him lightly "So why stand and fight. Elia would not have killed the child, couldn't even if she wanted to"

He was silent for a long, long moment. "Stark" he eventually said, grinding the word out with all the reluctance in the world.

He felt Ashara squeeze his arm tight "You hate him that much?"

"How can you not?" Arthur looked to her "I remember after Harrenhal, how you were so entranced believing you had found love. You were so back then happy, then Stark took that away from you even while you carried his child. So much for his Arryn honor" he spat out.

Ashara sighed "He faced a difficult time, all of us did"

"That is no excuse!" Arthur's voice was firm, though not loud. "He was yours by promise, a promise he broke. He disgraced you after all that you have given him. Ashara, realise this, your 'love' for him blinds you to his lies and deceit"

Ashara shook her head calmly, lifting Arthur's arm and kissing it "No, my brother. You do not know him. Ned is a good man"

Arthur stared into his sister's eyes, meeting those violet orbs that filled with a calm determination borne of assured knowledge. He looked away and huffed "We remain in disagreement then"

Ashara patted his shoulder "Trust me at least"

"I do, my issue is with Stark. I worry for what will happen to you under his 'care'"

She swatted him lightly "Then do not. He and you are much alike, he will not hurt me"

Arthur gave her a look.

She swatted him again "He will not"

He scoffed "As you say"

They fell into a comfortable silence again, each contemplating their thoughts. After a while Ashara started idly tapping on her brother's arm. Arthur watched her in silence, feeling the tapping of her fingers through the bandages wrapped around his stump.

"Do you know who she is?" he asked her, looking at his arm.

"Lady Ash of Ashfeld I hear"

Arthur shook his head "Im not familiar with the name"

"Raised in Essos by a hedge knight I was informed"

Arthur snorted. Ashara smirked a little. "No, I dont know where she is really from or if that is even her name. All I know for sure is that Elia trusts her and Rhaenys adores her"

Arthur waved his arm slightly, feeling as if the hand that was supposed to be there was clutching his sister's arm. Yet the empty stump he was clearly seeing said otherwise.

" _Ghost limb they call it"_ He remembered Selmy saying " _Feeling as if your limb is there when it's been cut off"_

Arthur remembered that day. They had passed by a beggar missing his right arm, only a stub of a limb left. He had severed limbs at that point in his career and he wondered what happened to those that survived the ordeal.

"Wonder no more…" He muttered.

"Hm?"

He shook his head "Nothing. Just...I...I did not think I would ever have this happen to me"

He remembered the dead-eyed look of the beggar as he threw him a coin. It made him shiver.

"No one does" Ashara replied "But you are better than most. Even with one hand you can defeat any number of opponents of that I have no doubt. Besides, you are hardly the first warrior to lose a limb and still keep on fighting"

Arthur nodded, feeling a slight bit better about his situation. A slight.

It was a dip in the pool of misery, but it was there.

"When will you be leaving?" He asked, holding his sister's hand in his own.

Ashara smiled softly at him "In a few days"

Arthur swallowed, grip tightening. "Stay with me until you leave?"

Ashara leant over Arthur and kissed his forehead "Of course, dear brother"

* * *

"Ah, Lady Ash" Eddard said "Can I speak with you a moment?"

Ash turned around, raised a curious brow and nodded. Eddard took a position next to her on the balcony, both looking down on the godswood of Starfall.

"I wish to thank you"

"Hmm?" Ash turned to him.

"For keeping…" he hesitated "...Ser Arthur occupied, back at the tower. If not for you we would have undoubtedly lost more that we had. The others express their thanks as well"

The Warden nodded "It was my duty"

Eddard smiled a little and nodded in turn "Well, you performed your duty exceptionally. I was...surprised. I glimpsed some of your fight and I feared you being struck down. But you kept going. To face such an opponent as the Sword of the Morning..." there was awe in his voice "it is a daunting thing. To survive a miracle"

Ash's lips quirked into a small grin "It was a good fight"

Eddard laughed "That is not what I would describe it"

Ash shrugged "I have fought opponents that used a similar style to him before, though never with such a blade as Dawn"

"Dawn is a legendary weapon, made from star metal. Similar to Valyrian steel in many regards"

Ash chuckled "As I found out"

Eddard looked sheepish at that "I apologise"

The Warden shook her head "'tis nothing. Though, at least I will be able to say I crossed swords with Dawn and lived" she closed her eyes and took a breath, remembering the moment her steel greatsword shattered under Dawn's fierce light.

"I must thank you in turn, Lord Stark" she said as she looked to him.

Eddard raised a brow at her

"If not for your blade I would be minus a head now"

He nodded "Then our debts to each other are cleared. We each saved the other's life"

Ash nodded and extended her hand, Eddard gripping it the forearm and giving a firm shake.

They spent some time in the balcony overlooking the Godswood in pleasant conversation, talking about past battles and sharing tips on using greatswords. The Warden learned about the nature of Godswood and what a Heart Tree was, learned about the North and mighty Winterfell. In turn she told Eddard about once great knightly orders and about the Iron Legion. It was an easy enough story to twist, with Elia and Rhaenys' small lectures and stories on the history of the land.

As they conversed Ash found Lord Stark to be a modest man and one who clearly wore a great weight around his shoulders. His eyes spoke of exhaustion and loss. She knew this venture was deeply personal to him, yet he soldiered on. She respected him for that, respected him even more for being a leader, a true leader, that wore the mantle of responsibility with respect.

Before they knew it bells began ringing around the castle, a steady chiming of one ring then two following.

"It seems I am to depart, my Lady"

Ash inclined her head towards the door "Lead on"

She followed Eddard through Starfall's breezy corridors, down into the courtyard and through the castle's gates. They walked down the wide sandstone steps to the docks all the while being followed by an ever increasing number of people. Ash could spot the servants easily enough but it seemed there were some more well dressed ladies, or younger girls, who were making their way down as well.

At the docks there was a gathering in front of a pier with a docked ship. Even at a distance though Ash could make out Ashara, the great beauty the center of the mob hugging and kissing courtiers and servants alike. It was a tearful goodbye it seemed, with many dabbing their eyes and wiping their faces.

Eddard stopped a moment, taking it all in. Ash stepped beside him, courtiers and servants passing them by to say their goodbyes to an obviously well-loved madam.

"She is quite the Lady" Eddard said.

Ash nodded "It appears so"

The Lord of Winterfell sighed "I dont suppose you can give me advice on keeping a woman happy?"

Ash blinked, caught off-guard "Uhm" she scratched a scar on her chin, then shrugged, arms out "Don't disappoint her?"

* * *

Elia saw Ash approach, the Warden catching some curious glances, Elia's amongst them. When she had seen Ash in the garden it was the first time she had ever seen a woman in men's clothing and it was an odd sight, though not an unpleasant one. Ash had just the right build to fill it out and Elia had long since accustomed herself to her Warden's extensive scarring. However the Princess could see how uncomfortable Ash had been when she had first left her room so did not comment and tried her best to ease her discomfort.

Thankfully for Ash most of the attention was focused on Ashara. Said woman was only now getting through the last of the well-wishers, her own brothers, going up to them and kissing them on the cheek, hugging and reciting blessings for them. Dorren and Arthur gave her some parting gifts and the three siblings shared a laugh at joke they only knew.

One part of Elia was happy, in a way, to know that Ashara had so many good friends and siblings that would miss her presence while the other was jealous and homesick, thinking back to the Water Gardens and Sunspear, and to her friends and her brothers there. Though both were dwarfed by the knot of worry in her stomach, thinking about her best friend's fate.

She felt Ash's presence to her side and somehow, she felt she could draw off of the Wardens' endless confidence.

A scarred hand landed on her shoulder "Are you okay?"

Elia put her hand over Ash's "No, but I will manage. Just...It is difficult, to lose a friend and not know when you will be able to speak again"

The Warden's hold tightened minutely "Yes" Ash said simply.

Elia sighed "Well, at least I still have you" she said with a small laugh.

Ash took a deep breath "Yes"

The Dayne brothers, after a final hug and kiss, stepped back from their sister and Lord Stark made his way through the crown to stand by his new concubine. He looked incredibly awkward doing so, especially because the lords of the House were not giving him welcome looks, but Ashara acted quickly, kissing him on the cheek and taking his hand in her own. As she turned to give an address however a little silver blur darted out of the crowd and jumped into her. Ashara easily gathered Rhaenys into her arms, lifted the little girl up and gave her a hug.

"Here Aunty Ashara" Rhaenys shoved a knitted handkerchief to Ashara's face, the woman laughing as she took it in hand. It was a remarkably decent looking thing, a square of purple silk with an embroidered silver star in the middle. Gold thread lined the star while below the words 'Shine Bright' were stitched in with silver thread.

Elia walked up and patted her child's head. For however messy she could be, Rhaenys was very nimble fingered and took to knitting well. This close though she could see that the silver thread was a little too thick and natural looking to be thread.

"Rhaenys, darling…" Ashara ran her finger across the stitching "Thank you so much. Is this...?" she pinched a silver thread and looked at Rhaenys' hair.

The little girl nodded "So you can always carry me with you!" she said with a smile, though her red rimmed eyes told the truth of her apparent cheeriness.

Ashara squeezed the little princess tight and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Thank you, thank you so, so much my precious little darling"

Elia's heart melted and she wiped a tear from her eye.

After a last kiss Ashara passed Rhaenys to Ash and faced Elia.

"So" Elia said but the moment she opened her mouth Ashara pulled her into a tight embrace before she could say anything further. Elia reciprocated and the two shared a moment of close, comfortable silence with each other. It was a moment that lasted forever as Elia remembered and longed for every joyful memory she shared with her one true friend when she was in the Red Keep. Yet Elia felt it did not last long enough, for soon they parted, holding each other's hands.

"Goodbye, Elia" Ashara whispered after a long silence.

"Goodbye, Ashara" Elia choked out.

The ship's bells rang and a crewman called out that everything was loaded. With a final kiss on each others cheek the friends waved goodbye to each other.

Elia stood on the pier watching the ship sail off. Beside her Ash was holding a tearful Rhaenys who was sobbing into the Warden's shirt. Elia turned her gaze away for a moment, intent on taking Rhaenys but paused when she saw Ash was gently rocking the girl in her arms.

Then she started singing.

" _Bel companho, si dormetz o velhatz,_

 _No dormatz plus, suau vos ressidatz!_

 _Qu'en orien vei l'estela creguda_

 _C'amenal jorn, qu'eu l'ai be conoguda,_

 _Et ades sera l'alba..."_

Though Ash' voice was rough and she was singing softly, almost murmuring, Elia could still feel the emotion behind the song. She had spent enough time studying music to recognise that, despite not knowing the words. It was a song of parting, of longing, of goodbyes.

It was a fitting song.

Rhaenys slowed her sobbing, looking at Ash with wide eyed curiosity. Elia gently wrapped her arms around Ash, laying her forehead against her shoulder and slipping a hand to hold Rhaenys'.

"Teach me that song?" She asked.

"Of course"

* * *

Oberyn read through the letter in his hand for the upteenth time, not that he had much else to do on board a ship. The piece of parchment had been the only thing occupying his mind ever since the raven carrying it landed in Sunspear's roost bearing the seal of House Dayne. It was what led him to charter a ship, fill it with trusted men and set off east as fast as he could.

"Get me another" he read aloud.

The letter came with a lock of dark hair and was scented, heavily, with a peach perfume. Normally he would have thought it a gift from a lady, an invitation for a little dalliance, but for that one phrase. A phrase that he had nearly forgotten in all honesty until he received the letter that brought that memory back.

 _He had snuck into their mother's room after their afternoon lecture, Elia fuming after one of the other girls came in with a more exotic and better smelling perfume that outshined hers. As a way to remedy this obviously disastrous situation she wanted one of mothers' since she always smelled great. Since she couldn't sneak around on the account of several caretakers constantly watching over her, the task of retrieving said perfume fell to him._

 _The problem was that he did not know what perfume even looked like. And he could already hear voices outside looking for him._

 _So he made the swift decision to just snatch up the closest thing that looked like perfume, a pink stained glass bottle on a bedside table, and make his escape._

 _He snuck by his minders by hiding in the little alcoves in the corridor, evaded the guards by throwing pebbles and making noises to distract them, then sneaking past when they looked away. He did not even stop to talk to a girl who was waving at him, though he did flash a smile._

 _Finally, after all that arduous effort, he rejoined Elia and graciously offered his pilfered spoils. She looked at it, snatched it out of his hand and then sprayed a little on her hand and sniffed._

" _Peaches" she said, looking at him like he was an idiot. "Peaches. Oberyn, peaches were a thing three months ago! Argh!" she poked at his chest and handed him back the bottle "Get me another"_

 _Oberyn groaned._

A knock on the door interrupted his reminiscing. He opened it to a crewman. "We're here" the man said. Oberyn nodded then proceeded to fetch his shirt and prepare the rest of his gear.

Once on deck he could see the magnificence of Starfall with its gleaming sandstone walls and the tall towers of the Swordstone keep. He had been here before with Elia and their mother, looking for suitors a few years prior. He remembered being awed by the gleaming white castle then as well, though at the time his attention was more on a different gleaming jewel.

 _Soon. Soon._ He told himself, hands gripping his arms in anticipation.

The ship docked along a pier and the gangplank was lowered. He had half a mind to jump the distance but he stayed his nerves. On the pier itself stood a herald who performed the welcoming ceremony but Oberyn barely paid him any attention, wishing he could just rush in. When the ceremony finished he did just that, brushing past the herald and the escort straight into the castle, heedless of their protests.

He remembered the castle well enough since his last visit and thankfully it did not change much. Asking people he passed by he quickly made his way to one of the castle gardens, heart racing.

 _Please be there, please._

Stepping onto the garden he saw her and the relief in his heart made him drop to his knees. Elia, his dear, sweet sister, was alive and well. So were her children, his nephew in her arms and his niece sat next to her, hale and happy.

Someone else was with them though, a tall, scarred blonde. The woman, and it was a woman once he got a second look, nodded to Elia who began to sing.

" _Reis glorios, verais lums e clartatz,_

 _Deus poderos, Senher, si a vos platz,_

 _Al meu companh siatz fizels aiuda!_

 _Qu'eu no lo vi, pos la nochs fo venguda,_

 _Et ades sera l'alba"_

It was a song in a language he had never heard. Soft, slow and almost melancholic.

When she finished he couldn't help but clap. "Beautiful" he said.

Elia was momentarily stunned, sucking in a startled breath but she recovered, standing and hurrying over to him. "Oberyn!" She yelled with a teary smile as she embraced him.

He was too weak with relief to hold them up and they fell to their knees, embracing, laughing, crying, overfilled with emotion. Little Aegon fussed in between them, small baby arms waving to slap them away when he deemed them too close, face scrunched up in displeasure at all the sudden noise. Elia tried in vain to calm him and stop the imminent crying but she was too emotional, torn between calming Aegon and crying into Oberyn's shoulder. Oberyn instead took the baby in his arms and kissed his forehead, turning to the side so Elia lay her head on his shoulder and Aegon wasn't being squished between the two of them, which seemed to make the babe happier.

"Oh Gods" Elia choked, squeezing him "Oh thank the gods. I am so happy to see you again my brother"

Oberyn kissed his sister's forehead, smile as sunny as the sun. "I can say much the same my sister. I was so worried. So very worried. We heard no news from King's Landing for months. We only learned what happened a few weeks ago" he squeezed her tight "We feared you dead. Gods, I...I..." His throat tightened, he couldn't form words, the emotion too much.

Elia only hugged him tighter. "Im here, im here"

Eventually, they both calmed themselves down enough to stand back up. Oberyn immediately looked to his niece who was hovering curiously nearby, next to the blonde who had a scarred hand on her shoulder. In fact, with the sleeves of her - mens! - shirt rolled up, he could see she had quite the collection of scars on both her well muscled arms. But for now he focused on his niece, looking at him with a questioning expression.

He smiled, waving at her "Hello there little princess, im your uncle Oberyn!"

Rhaenys blinked for a moment, then her eyes widened in comprehension "Oohhh"

He laughed and scooped her up, hugging her tight. "Oh, when I last saw you, you were so little! Oh thank the gods you are safe!"

She giggled and hugged him in turn "It was Lady Ash!" she pointed to the woman.

Oberyn raised his brow "Oh?"

"Indeed" Elia answered "She is our savior and our Warden. I owe her my life"

Oberyn looked between both women "Well, there is a story here is there not?"

There was, and what a story it turned out to be. Elia filled him in, starting with the encounter in the Red Keep, to their escape and their survival in the woods. Oberyn would not have believed this story if it was said by anyone other than his sister, so utterly outlandish it was. Yet there was more, Elia continued with their attempts to get to Dorne through the Marches and the bandits they dealt with, rather how Ash dealt with them, and then their encounter with Lord Stark. His appreciation of the man went up by several notches hearing how he extended his protection to her. Then she finished with their arrival at Starfall and how they had been housed here under the care of Dorren ever since.

At the end of the tale he got up, approached Ash, put his hands on her shoulders, then gave her kiss.

* * *

They departed soon after Oberyn arrived. In fact, it was on the morning after. They said their goodbye's to Dorren after a final feast and thanked him again for his hospitality, in turn the Lord of Starfall bid them a good farewell and wished them well on their journey.

It was only when they boarded the ship and set sail that Elia finally breathed a sigh of relief, away from the presence of her brother for but a moment while he played with Rhaenys and Aegon.

"Why did you not tell him?" Ash asked her as they stood on the prow of the ship, looking out into the vast blue yonder.

She shook her head "Because I love him and I know him well. Arthur may not have lived his fury. He will find out soon enough, just, let us put some distance first"

Ash nodded. "So" she said after a moment's pause "Where to now?"

Elia smiled "Home"

* * *

 **A/N: Well, this certainly took a while. I really should have finished this Sunday, I have no excuse for that other than laziness. I do apologise.**

 **Anyway, there we have it. Oberyn makes his arrival and everyone takes their leave. I had hoped this would actually end in Sunspear but, like many of my intended chapter plans, it just doesn't turn out that way. I wanted to include an Arthur POV thinking it would be brief and reveal more of the Lyanna-Rhaegar story I wanted to convey, which will likely be the final mention of it for a long while. Yet it turned into showing how much Ashara cared for her brother which I don't think was necessary on reflection.**

 **The song that Ash sings is Reis Glorios by Giraut de Bornelh which is up on youtube. I recommend the one by Estampie, which is not a wholly accurate reconstruction (not that it detracts from the quality) but is more sombre and fitting than the others.**

 **The translation for the parts they sing in the chapter is as follows:**

 **Ash:**

 _ **"Bel companho, si dormetz o velhatz,**_

 _ **No dormatz plus, suau vos ressidatz!**_

 _ **Qu'en orien vei l'estela creguda**_

 _ **C'amenal jorn, qu'eu l'ai be conoguda,**_

 _ **Et ades sera l'alba."**_

Sweet friend, do you wake or are you sleeping?

Sleep no more, now, you must be waking!

For in the east I see a star rise

Day-bringer, star familiar to my eyes,

And soon it will be dawn.

 **Elia** :

 ** _"Reis glorios, verais lums e clartatz,_**

 ** _Deus poderos, Senher, si a vos platz,_**

 ** _Al meu companh siatz fizels aiuda!_**

 ** _Qu'eu no lo vi, pos la nochs fo venguda,_**

 ** _Et ades sera l'alba"_**

Glorious king, true light and clarity,

Almighty God, Lord, in your charity,

Be a true help now to my friend!

For I've not seen him since day's end,

And soon it will be dawn.

 **Note: I dont actually know Latin so I dont know if these are fully accurate. Also, why is Ash singing in Latin yet speaking in (what I assume is) english in Westeros? Because of poor planning by me. In game the Knights are all supposed to be speaking Latin and I just kinda...forgot that when I started writing this. Just another plothole to cover over somewhere down the line.**

 **I included the song for many reasons, because it's cool and because it fits. Mainly though I wanted a way to build up Ash as a character some more, try and branch beyond the "badass with tragic past" without necessarily losing that. I have a, likely unfounded, fear that Ash is simply a blank slate or an uninspired trope so I kinda want to make that not be the case.**

 **Anyway, if you guys have questions do feel free to ask and I will try and answer. In any case, thank you for reading!**


	10. Chapter 10-Return

**A/N: Woo chapter 10!**

 **Thank you all those who have read, reviewed, favourited and/or followed!**

* * *

The caws of gulls and the salty sea air permeated her senses, and when she opened her eyes she saw the sky and sun.

 _Hmm?_

She ran her hand down her breastplate and felt the gashes and dents on her armour.

She flexed, straining her muscles and soothing the aches. She felt surprisingly nimble.

In fact, she felt completely fine.

Which was surprising, considering the last memory she had was that of her own death.

Apollyon sat up and scanned her surroundings.

She was in a storeroom of some sort, likely an armoury considering the amount of weapons, armour and other war gear stored around. The walls were sandstone and made from thickly cut pieces of stone. Leaning back against the crate she was propped up against, she looked up at a small a window that shined light through iron bars.

From outside she could hear the crash of waves on rock.

As well as the sound of people.

Apollyon breathed.

She smelt the sea air, and the iron rust, and the blood.

She removed her helmet and ran her hand through her thickly braided hair, the sharp talons of her gauntlet cutting some strands. Bringing her helmet up against the light she observed how the rays were filtered through the small, blood rusted holes of her visor, almost to the point where the light barely filtered through at all. Honeycombed eyes looked back at her from the black steel helmet as she felt the air brush her face and the sun shine on her skin for the first time in a long, long while.

She hated the feeling and put her helmet back on.

 _So, I am alive indeed. How I wonder?_

Her hand brushed up against something and she looked to see what it was.

Her greatsword lay at her side, blood still coating the blade and dripping onto the floor.

She took hold of the handle and stood, bringing her blade up in front of her. Blood ran down its length from pointed tip to serrated base, over the elaborate norse crossguard and onto the leather and iron bound grip. Blood started to soak into her gauntlets before she swept the blade to the side and cleared out the excess crimson, the blood forming an arc on the dusty floor.

Stowing the greatsword onto her back she walked to the only visible door and peeked through the cracks in the wood.

Outside she saw the crenulations of a wall and assumed that the storeroom she was in was part of the defences. Interestingly though there were people on the wall, unarmed and walking along it as if it was a road. There were people of all kinds, the rich in their flowing finery and flashing jewels, the commoners in their muted garb and the poor in their rags.

She also saw the slaves.

Chained and broken, these things that she hardly considered human milled about, forced to do as their masters commanded them.

It was a travesty of existence, of the real life man was meant to live on this earth.

In fact, the mere existence of unarmed and...soft, civilians irked her. That they so freely trotted around on a wall only added to her annoyance. Where were the soldiers, the sentries and patrols?

She shook her head, crushing her quickly mounting disgust for now and focusing on what was important.

She needed information. Only then could she act.

She opened the door.

The two guards on either side were as surprised as she was.

One opened his mouth to speak but a taloned hand ripped out his throat before he could even make a noise. The one on the other side did not have that courtesy as a powerful backhand blow smashed into his nose into his face and his head into the wall. Apollyon quickly dragged both bodies inside and shut the door before they even had a chance to hit the ground.

"That did not go as planned" she said mostly to herself, looking down at the dead bodies at her feet.

They were both men, on the younger side of their twenties, brown skinned and black haired. They wore leather brigandines with a large circular iron boss covering their chest, iron pauldrons with fur padding and simple spangenhelms held by a leather chin strap. They also wore loose fitting black trousers and thick black leather boots.

Apollyon inspected their weapons, picking one up.

Their main armament looked like someone had stuck a katana on a long stick. The handle was twice the length of her own greatswords' while the blade was made of steel, with a one sided blade. She gave it a few test swings, feeling the balance, which seemed functionable, enough for a weapon. She imagined on horseback this half-blade half pole weapon would perform well cutting down on its foes.

Looking around, it seemed this was the main weapon of whatever army held this city for there were many of these on racks, though she also spotted bows and some arming swords.

A noise drew her attention back to the bodies.

One of them, the man with his throat ripped out, was choking, looking at her wide eyed.

Apollyon glanced at the blade in her hands.

She stabbed him with it.

It slid easily between his ribs and he gave one last gasp before falling still.

"At least you kept it sharp"

The dead man did not respond and she sank the blade further so it stuck into his body and didn't fall when she let go. Giving the other body a second look, and a kick to make sure, she confirmed he too was dead before she took another peek outside. This time she opened the door the slightest inch.

Nothing seemed to have changed. People were still milling around, not noticing the sudden absence of the guards . Though, now with a slightly better view, she saw that the structure she was in was out of the way from the main thoroughfare of the wall. It also meant that the only ones to notice would be the next change of guards.

Looking back at the bodies, she shrugged. Then, with another peek, watching the towers in the distance and making sure no one spotted her, she left the armoury.

* * *

Maester Wulfric paced nervously in the room. His chains, burdens and markers of his knowledge, clanked and clattered as he shuffled about. In his hands was a small letter, sent by raven.

"Well!" Maester Antemon prodded, sat on a chair in front of a desk piled with books and parchment "What did they it say, will the Archmaesters be called to Conclave?"

Measter Wulfric threw his hands in the air, chain links rattling. "I dont know! Archmaester Castos wants to see it for himself. He has reservations and wants confirmation"

Maester Antemon shook his head, distress on his features. "Archmaesters' Theobald and Perestan said the same. Though it is incredibly inefficient, and frustrating, I dont blame them for their reservations. It is a tough thing to believe. Very tough"

Maester Antemon nodded, then turned to his pacing. It was quiet in the room, both men contemplative and very, very nervous.

A while later the door opened, making both jump. An apprentice leaned in "Maester Wulfric, Maester Antemon. Archmaester Castos is here. He wishes for your presence"

Both men nodded and followed the apprentice through the halls of the Citadel. Though torches lit their path both men felt the cold grip of darkness enclose on them as they travelled. The shadows flickered and danced and Wulfric fought the urge to wave them away.

Finally they met up with the Archmaester.

And several others, all Archmaesters.

Wulfric and Antemon came to a stop.

Archmaesters Theobald, Perestan, Harodon, Nymos and Castos awaited them. Masks of Lead, Copper, Steel, Iron, Gold and Platinum stared at them. They represented over a hundred years of cumulative knowledge, the greatest and most learned men of their time.

Archmaester Castos snapped his fingers, bringing the two Measters out of their stupor. "Come now, show me and recount what you have said. I know you both have repeated yourselves so you will be glad to know that this will be the last moment"

Wulfric and Antemon both gulped and nodded, robbed of words in the presence of such majesties of knowledge. Soon enough they found their tongues though as they lead the Archmaesters to the source of their worries.

"It began about a month ago" Antemon said "About the time of the Sacking of Kings Landing, now that I think about it" He shook his head "Maester Wulfric and I were taking our apprentices to their final examination in the Candle Room. Both had qualified in quite good standard and were set to forge their links, young as they are" He couldn't help but add the last bit.

Who knew when you had another chance to highlight your teaching to SIX Archmaesters?

Maester Wulfric cleared his throat, continuing on "Yes, indeed. When my apprentice, Aethan, a good lad that one, entered the room we had only turned our backs but a scant moment before he came back out, looking rather worried" He stopped and looked ahead.

In front of them was the door to the Candle Room, watched by the Maesters' two apprentices. They looked as tired as their tutors but had enough wherewithal to bow to the Archmasters, though Aethan swayed a little when he did.

Antemon nodded to them, pointedly looking at the door.

The apprentices opened it.

Inside the completely blacked out room was a single, long silver candlestick.

The newly arrived Archmaesters gasped and murmured amongst each other.

"The candle is lit" Wulfric said, eyes glued to the dancing purple flame that laughed in the collective faces of over a hundred years of human knowledge "Magic has returned to the world"

* * *

In retrospect, Apollyon should have thought a little bit more about how exactly she could of blended in. Her black plate armour stood out enough on its own. Add to the fact that it showed signs of recent battle, with spiked pauldron and poleyns, it was inevitable that she was going to be noticed.

Though, perhaps beheading the armed guards the instant they confronted her was perhaps a bit of an overreaction.

Though, she would argue that it was on their lack of thinking, confronting her armed as she was.

Despite the fact that she could not understand their tongue and assumed the gestures and tone were hostile.

In any case, Apollyon found herself in a bit of a pickle.

In front of her was a unit of guardsmen, ten men strong blocking the street with a second and third unit moving in to reinforce. She felt another unit approaching behind her, and more around. Though she had slain many, and the evidence was strewn all over the street, it seemed the entire garrison of the city was being deployed to deal with her. However, despite their numbers, the ones in front of ehr were very hesitant to move in.

She felt a prickle of pride at that fact.

It did not stop her from punishing them ruthlessly for it.

She lunged.

They flinched.

Her sword skewered a man.

In the motion of getting him off by throwing him to the side, she split another's stomach. She followed up with a swing that cleaved a guardsman from shoulder to ribs and then shifted back, bringing her sword up to block three overhead swings.

She pushed the blades away in time to deflect the next swing aimed at her abdomen. With her sword aligned perpendicularly to her head she lunged again and tore a guardsman's groin.

He went down screaming.

She followed up, parrying one blow then another and with a heavy swing she arced her greatsword in front of her. Three fell, hewn down like trees before a giants axe and as the bisected bodies fell to the floor Apollyon surged, splitting another in two. The last two of their unit made a valiant effort, attacking in different directions but she weaved through their blows easily, getting past their guard, tearing out their eyes and clawing their faces with taloned gauntlets.

She did not stop, pushing onto the second unit which she decimated with ferocious efficiency. Blood, bodies and guts stained the sandy street, and the walls of the buildings on either side.

The third unit tried to set up, forming in two rows and presenting their long weapons as a wall of blades.

She threw a dead body at them and charged into the hole.

They fell to talons.

Hearing the stamping of feet behind her she sprinted ahead towards a now suddenly clear street, following the course of the wall she had formed in her mind's eye, heading for the gatehouse she knew was in the distance.

She passed by frantic running civilians who screamed and shrieked as they saw the blood soaked black monster approach them. Many ran to nearby buildings or alleys to get out of her way but the few who were foolish or unlucky were swatted with an armoured fist. As she ran Apollyon could see the gatehouse looming up ahead of her, a large structure that towered over every other, thanks mostly to a gigantic golden harby that sat on it, perched, looking down at the city with solid golden eyes.

Once she got there she slowed to a stop.

A wall of spears blocked the gate. Three rows of ten men each, locked in a phalanx.

Apollyon surveyed her new opponents, for these men were not the guardsmen she had been reaping. Thick black leather curiasses, large black circular shields that covered their bodies, eight feet long spears and a peculiar black metal helmet that covered their faces but for their eyes, and had an extended noseguard that spiked over their heads.

On top of the gatehouse and on the walls were archers, bows aimed and drawn. The side streets were also blocked by more of the black garbed spearmen while behind her the guardsmen finally caught up.

All paused, looking at her.

She scoffed "Well, what are you waiting for?"

The archers loosed a volley on her.

She knelt, blade planted in front.

Like rain the arrows fell, volley after volley of barbed, flesh tearing points flying through the sky.

Soon the archers halted, their officers looking at the dark mass below them.

A minute passed in tense silence.

As the men of Astapor were about to cheer, a haunting, echoing laughter made their blood run cold.

Apollyon sat up, arrows falling off of her, though so many more stuck she looked like a porcupine. Chuckling, she brushed off the arrows on her pauldrons and helmet so casually it was as if she was brushing off sand.

The guardsmen were slack jawed, wide eyed and utterly terrified.

Apollyon continued to laugh as she turned and slaughtered them.

* * *

Yellow Maggot.

That was his name.

It had been his name since he had murdered that baby as its mother screamed.

It had been his name as he became _Dovaogēdy_.

But it had not always been his name.

He was one of the lucky ones. Many of his brothers were born into the ranks, raised from birth. He was captured.

So he knew what freedom was, for a brief moment in his life.

 _Dothraki._ _I am Dothraki._

He did not remember if he was actually _Dothraki_ or not, only that being _Dothraki_ was important.

 _Vaes Dothrak._

It was a place. What was there he did not know but it was a place outside of Astapor, outside of this city of chains.

He kept these memories because it reminded him that there was something out there, beyond the whips of the Masters.

It did not matter if they were truly his own memories or something he made up.

 _Dothraki. I am Dothraki._

It had kept him alive.

It gave him hope.

Now though, now he may have something which was _more_ than hope. More than surviving.

A chance.

In the form a _Dyni_ made of black steel.

He saw it for the first time on the Harpy Gate.

It saw them as well, him and his brothers, the vaunted _Dovaogēdy._ They surrounded it. The first time since the last slave revolt a force of _Dovaogēdy_ had been deployed in the city.

Yet it showed no fear. Facing the best soldiers of the world the _Dyni_ simply _laughed_ in their faces.

The second encounter came when his unit, bolstered by more _Dovaogēdy_ from the personal retinue of nearby Masters, were ordered to clear out a neighbourhood which the _Dyni_ had run into. The guardsmen, already weary after the abysmal losses they had endured, outright refused to go further.

So the Masters turned to them.

They advanced into the tight, narrow streets, two abreast and six men deep, with their shortswords out. More of his brethren were being sent in from different directions in the hope that they would trap it.

The neighbourhood was surrounded, the people either fled or hiding. The _Dyni_ , if it was flesh and blood underneath the black armour as their Masters had said, was doomed.

It was not.

His unit found the remains of another as they advanced. It was as if he had stepped into a butcher's, not one body was whole. It was the first time many of them had seen _Dovaogēdy_ slain in combat and it gave the Master commanding them pause. Though, it was likely for a different reason.

The corpse of the slain unit's Master had been impaled on a post, his silk robes soaked in blood and his eyes gouged out, mouth open in a silent scream.

Their Master quickly ordered them to move on.

Right into the _Dyni_ ' _s_ open arms.

Their _wise_ Master was the first to die as the _Dyni_ fell on them from the rooftops, a blood-soaked blade carving him from shoulder to hip. A brother fell as well, head lopped off, before they formed a bulwark with their shields interlocked.

There was a brief pause, the _Dyni_ watching them and they watching it, before they attacked.

Any normal enemy would have been bowled over by the advancing force of a solid wall of shields and swords. Or at least would have fallen back.

The _Dyni_ fought.

Without their spears it's sword had greater reach and the _Dyni_ kept its distance as they advanced. It had such tremendous strength that one blow shattered a shield whenever it hit, sometimes cutting off the hand that held the shield as well.

After two brothers fell they switched tactics, charging at it instead. The _Dyni_ sweeped it's mighty weapon and cleaved two men in one blow the moment they broke formation.

Six dead. Half of their number gone and they hadn't even so much as spat at it.

They continued the charge nonetheless. They were _Dovaogēdy_ after all.

The _Dyni_ stood its ground against their assault, turning aside one brother with a swipe of its sword. Another tried to take advantage as its weapon was to its side but it simply thrust the pommel of its sword into his face with an audible crack.

Even when they managed to get in reach of their weapons the _Dyni_ proved as adept as it had been at a distance. It grabbed its sword by the blade and used it as a staff, deftly maneuvering and using the tight space to its advantage. It pulled a brother in front of the attack of another and when both tried to find their feet it thrust to skewer them.

He tried to intervene, throwing himself over his brothers shield first to cover them but the _Dyni_ simply swept him aside, cleaving his shield in twain and leaving his arm numb to the point of uselessness. As he hit the floor he rolled to the side, avoiding a strike but he was pinned between a building and the _Dyni's_ blade.

He stared up at the _Dyni_ , at the menacing black, blood soaked helmet and prepared himself for death.

The only reason he lived was the timely arrival of the third unit which took the _Dyni's_ attention away from him, allowing one of his brethren to hoist him back up and shuffle him to the back of the shambly "formation".

The _Dyni_ turned away from the reinforcements, looking towards them. Then it proceeded to smash its way through with nary a scratch. Of the three sent into the ground, only he could get back up again.

As he watched the _Dyni_ escape, Yellow Maggot could not help but pray.

Not to the Gods, of this City or the next, for they were cruel. The Gods were slavers gods, worshipped my Masters.

He prayed to the _Dyni_ , this thing that laughed in the face of the Gods and Masters both.

For if the Gods belonged to the Masters, then the Demons could be worshipped by the slaves.

* * *

The acolytes secured the final sacrifice to the pyre, affixing him to the wooden pole with rope. In his drugged state the boy barely put up a fight, not that a struggling twelve year old would trouble anyone. The boy's mother however was a different case, putting up a ferocious struggle even after a dose of concentrated poppy essence had been administered to her. She screamed, spat and bit at the acolytes and when that failed she began invoking her gods to curse them.

She was a fool, Melissandre thought. There was only one true God and she was about to feel his blessing.

The acolytes stacked the tinder. The mother lost some of her bite, momentary rage peeling back to show the fear underneath. She whimpered but she staunchly refused to cry, instead speaking to her child, addressing him in a mother's soft tone. She whispered about how this was a dream, that he would soon wake up and they would have a fine breakfast and how he would not have to do his chores tomorrow.

She kept speaking even as the acolytes poured the pitch.

Her speech turned to incomprehensible sobbing as the torch as brought.

As Melisandre took the torch and stepped up to light the flame, she could hear the mother's final words.

"I love you, my sweet"

The Priestess touched the torch to the pitch.

The fire blazed, fierce and hot, a great roaring furnace that consumed the sacrifices.

Melisandre was long practiced to tuning out the screams, focusing instead on the flames and invoking the magic gifted to her by her God. In her eyes the flames danced and danced, changing shape and form as they devoured the sacrifices for this ritual. She was in a deep trance, eyes unblinkingly staring into the flames even as they were close enough for her to touch, for it to touch her. Around her the acolytes observed keenly, wanting to learn from the one of the most talented seers of their order.

In the fire she saw images take from, comprehensible visions from the One True God.

A figure garbed in full plate armour and holding a greatsword tore through...something. Something that brought about dread in her heart.

A pair dancing, a woman and an armoured figure hand in hand.

The armoured figure stepping, or was that falling? into _fire_.

A fierce duel between two figures, the armoured one with a greatsword and the other with a smaller, unfamiliar blade. The former was strong, delivering great blows but the latter eventually won, splitting the armoured figure into wisps of flame.

Then everything blew away but for the small wisps of fire which slowly coalesced into a single, bright flame.

Which exploded in a dazzling gout of of bright, intense fire.

Melisandre didn't even realise she had been blown back until the acolytes were hoisting her up to her feet.

"Sister" the lead acolyte addressed her "Are you alright? What did you see?"

She took a moment to catch her breath and wipe the sweat from her brow. As she did she realised that she was shaking.

"It was...an intense vision" She replied at last, soothing her temples "I must speak with the High Priest"

She made her way out of the courtyard and back into the temple, ascending long flights of stairs to reach the balcony overlooking the courtyard.

In there was a man dressed in the red robes of her order, though his was gilded compared to a normal acolyte's plain red.

"You saw something worth sharing with me?" he asked as he offered cool wine.

Melisandre nodded and took a gulp, savouring the cool and refreshing liquid. It gave her a chance to compose her thoughts and put to words her interpretation "I believe the Lord of Light has shown to me a great warrior, one who has been split by his enemies but reformed, one who has passed a great ordeal, a trial of fire"

The man raised a brow at that, expression pensive "Well, can you think why He would show such a warrior?"

She saw from his expression he was considering the same person she was "It is no coincidence certainly. Magic has come to the world again and this warrior has something to do with it. It may be Azhor Ahai, or it may be someone else, someone important connected to the prophesied one. I will need more time, and resources, to interpret the meaning"

The man nodded after a long moment of thought "You shall have what you need" He took a gulp of drink "The Temple will be yours. Work diligently Priestess and put your much vaunted talent to good use. The Lord of Light has seen fit to gift you this vision after many others have tried and failed to receive anything from the flames since the lighting of the candles"

Melisandre nodded, a slight smile on her lips "I have been blessed by His hand"

* * *

Apollyon wiped the blood off of her gauntlets, picking out the bits and pieces stuck between and underneath the talons.

She flicked them at her bound prisoner who complained, loudly. "Ao aspo!"

"Um, the Master says-" Apollyon cut off the translator, _and really, what an fortuitous find she was_ , with a wave of her hand.

"I can infer the meaning girl. Besides, he is not to speak unless spoken to" At that, she backhanded him hard enough for a few golden teeth to come loose.

The man howled in pain, spitting blood but though he glared a murderous glare he kept silent. His face already showed extensive bruising with one side a purplish black and one eye swelled shut. Blood leaked from open cuts, staining his silken dress.

Apollyon took a drink from a goblet which was quickly refilled by the translator, a black woman dressed in rather revealing clothes with a thick leather and iron collar tightly wrapped around her neck. She sat back on the soft couch with an exaggerated groan, some of the pillows tearing due to the spikes on her armour.

"So" she said, addressing the bound, huddled and fearful mass of people behind the Master of the house "Where were we? Oh yes, this city of Astapor" she made a motion with her hand "Go on, continue with this fascinating history lesson. And you" she pointed to the Master "You keep silent this time. No interruptions"

At the back of the richly furnished living room, pressing themselves against a wall, were the Master's wives and children.

At least, those that were still alive.

The translator conveyed Apollyon's words, after which there was a short pause, the women either too fearful or too panicked to speak.

Apollyon cleared her throat.

One of them jerked, quickly responding.

"The city of Astapor Mistress" The translator nervously said, listening carefully and speaking even more carefully "Is an old and grand city. It was a child of Old Ghis, it gave them their many slaves throughout the Empire…" she continued on, translating the history of the city and its many grand achievements, as well as the wealth that she would most certainly find elsewhere in the city.

Apollyon listened with one ear, while she looked out of an open doorway that led to a balcony that overlooked quite a bit of the city. It was night outside which made it easy to spot the torches carried by the forces that surrounded her.

Arrows littered the balcony, the windows and any opening that could be feasibly shot through. The archers were rather zealous until they realized that the occupants were still alive.

Mostly.

The bodies of the Masters guards littered the room, more of the black clad soldiers with their curios helmets. Amongst them were slaves caught in the melee or literally thrown at her by the Master as she tried to capture him. Also amongst the dead were some of his sons and daughters.

With all the bits and bodies inside, the living room was more a charnel house than anything else.

Her focus was pulled fully to the translator when she mentioned the slave soldiers.

"Oh?"

The translator, and the woman speaking, both jumped but hesitantly continued after a look. "Yes, Astapor is famous for the Unsullied, the..uhm.." the translator pointed to the bisected body of a bodyguard, his guts spilling over another body "...the best soldiers of all the known world. Uhm, aside from yourself of course, Mistress"

Apollyon pushed the nervous woman on "Tell me about them in detail. Their training, their organization"

"Uhm" The translator conveyed the message to the wife that was speaking but considering the long pause and rather frantic discussion, Apollyon could tell that they did not have the answer she wished.

She raised a hand, silencing them.

She pointed to the Master "You. Tell me about this...Unsullied"

The man glared at her but eventually conceded at the sight of her hand slowly curling into a fist.

"They are trained from birth or from a young age" the translator said "To be the most obedient and disciplined soldiers. They begin at the age of five, drilling every day until they master the shortsword, the shield and the three spears. Only one in four survive this training. When they come of age, they are sent to kill a child in front of its mother so that nothing remains of them"

As the Master spoke Apollyon increasingly leaned in until she had her elbows on her knees and she was staring at the Master. After the Master then translator fell silent she turned to look at the remains of one of the Unsullied nearby, reaching out a hand to lift the head up.

"My my" She whispered in slight awe.

She stared into the dead man's eyes, seeing not the glossy brown but a dark, forest shade of green.

She threw the head away, starling her 'hosts'.

"How many are there in the city?" she asked the Master.

"Near five thousand" the translator replied for him.

"All are trained in this manner?"

They nodded.

"All are slaves?"

It was a yes.

"Well then" she suddenly clapped and stood, looking out at the balcony, a plan forming in her mind.

"How many slaves are there in the city?" she asked idly as she grabbed her blade.

The answer was slow in coming "Five times as there are masters"

She chuckled, looking over the Masters family. Most shied away from her gaze but one boy, barely a man grown with a slight stubble and short black hair who stared defiantly at her.

She leveled her blade at his throat and he shrank back "What is your name?"

"Kraznis" He said through gritted teeth.

Apollyon grabbed his father and hoised him up with one hand "Well Kraznis, watch carefully"

She strode over to the balcony with her hostage/human shield in tow, shoving the man to the front so hard he nearly fell over the balcony. She also bid the translator to accompany her which the woman did with much reluctance.

Below and around her were hundreds of lit torches revealing the masked faces of Unsullied and with them, their Masters. Guardsmen with bows stood on rooftops, bows held in hand. From behind windows, walls and the Unsullied were curious civilians, wanting to see the _Dyni_ that had been causing such chaos in their city.

She slammed her greatsword on the ground, the sound reverberating through the cool night air, silencing the murmuring that had sprung up at her appearance.

"This is a Master" She said, projecting her voice as she lifted up her hostage who started to struggle in her grip.

The translator needed only one look to repeat her words.

"Look. Take a good, long, look. This thing is soft" she gripped his bruised face with her gauntlets making the man scream "This thing is weak" she snapped an arm "This thing is hardly even human" she squeezed his throat so that his screams turned to choking.

"This thing is a sheep"

"You" she pointed to one of the Unsullied "Are much stronger than this thing. Harder. Better. You, ALL of you" she swept her arm "Deserve life more than this thing" she shook the man in her hand who was quickly turning blue.

"But not much more. No. You are not yet Wolves."

She breathed in the night air "Why? Well, Wolves do not bow to sheep. Wolves do not cower to sheep. Wolves do not obey sheep"

The Unsullied watcher her behind their iron masks, unmoving. Their Masters looked at them, hands fidgeting on their whips.

"Sheep are prey"

She paused, looking down at the gathered masses below her.

"Easy prey"

She threw the master over the balcony.

"Why don't you hunt them?"

As the man fell with one last scream on his throat, his was not the first body to meet the ground.

* * *

 **A/N: Well. Hands up who saw that coming?**

 **During the hiatus I planned the general progression of this story and came up with a few arcs. The first Arc ended last chapter and now we start with the second, with Apollyon, because this is a For Honor crossover and it would be a sin to not have the best girl appear to take the spotlight.**

 **Once again, thank you all for reading, reviewing, favoriting and following this story. It continues to grow and I love it, so why not keep going?**


	11. Chapter 11-New developments

**A/N: Thank you to all those who reviews, favourited and/or followed so far! The story continues to develop and there will be much more in the future.**

* * *

A few months.

A few months she had spent in the Water Gardens.

A few months of resting, relaxing and recovering.

Her sword smashed against Oberyn's spear sending the man backwards.

It had been a difficult adjustment at first. But slowly, she did find a sense of normalcy to it all.

She did not let him gain distance, charging forwards to get in close.

When they had first sparred he had not known what to expect, and though he had been somewhat cautious after hearing of her exploits, he still expected a victory.

He learned very quickly that would never be the case.

Oberyn lashed out with his spear, thrusting from the bottom of the shaft, aiming for her head as he disengaged backwards. The move forced her to stop a moment to block allowing the spearman time to gain the key to his fighting style, space. This he used to attack in a flurry of thrusts and sweeps, the sheer volume of which kept Ash from advancing.

But it did not stop her.

She fought him as she would a Nobushi, by trying to lock his weapon and get past the blade. The moment she did the bout would end.

He did not make it easy though, fast and nimble as he was. But he did have his weaknesses.

He waved at them, watching from the sidelines.

Four girls waved back. Rhaenys, Obara, Nymeria and Tyene.

Ash _surged_.

Oberyn shift stance quickly, bringing his spear about to deliver a strike to her exposed abdomen.

She saw through the bait and with a twist of her wrists angled her blade so the strike glanced harmlessly to the side.

He tried to pedal back while reeling his spear in and while he managed to avoid the thrust by Ash' greatsword it left him unbalanced, enough for Ash close the distance even more.

"Ash! Ash! Ash!" Rhaenys cheered.

Oberyn put up an admirable defence considering his situation, using his spear like a staff to block and counterattack but Ash' strength was simply overpowering and eventually, when she hooked her crossguard over his neck, the bout was over.

"Ha!" Oberyn panted as he wiped sweat from his face "A good bout" he patted her shoulder and she nodded in reply before stumbling slightly as something jumped on her.

Looking down, Rhaenys' giggling face greeted her.

She chuckled, patting the little princes' hair. "Are you ready?"

She nodded enthusiastically, lifting up a sword of her own made of wood.

Ash looked over her, at the other girls who were currently ribbing their father on his loss. She saw some coins exchanged between them before Nymeria saw her and pulled her sisters over.

"Lady Ash" they bowed to her.

Oberyn complained from the back "I get insults and you get respect, from my own children no less…"

Ash snorted, motioning for the girls to get into position.

Rhaenys settled on a stance, sword held low in both hands and feet apart, angling her body sideways. The Sand Snakes settled into their own stances, with Tyne brandishing a wooden arming sword and an arming dagger, Nymeria stretching a lengths of silk with knots tied at intervals and Obara twirling her wooden staff.

The Warden planted her borrowed greatsword in the sands of the training ground and caught the wooden replica Oberyn threw at her. She gave it a twirl, testing the balance but mostly making a show, then planted it in front of her.

"Come then, let us see if you actually pay attention to what I say"

The sand snakes giggled but Rhaenys narrowed her eyes.

Ash smirked when she saw it.

Obara, fiery and impulsive, acted first. She closed the distance with a charge and lunged, trying to imitate her father's fighting style.

Ash deflected her blows easily, for as fierce and skilled as she liked to think herself to be, she was still twelve years old.

Obara though was not the main threat for behind her came her sisters, ten year old Nymeria and eight year old Tyne, each going for a different flank. Nymeria lashed with her silk cord trying to entangle the Wardens limbs but she only managed a distraction. Tyne on the other hand came the closest of the sisters to Ash herself, attacking from the side.

In response Ash wielded her weapon single handed, defending against Obara while the other arm tried to bat away Tyne's weapons and grab the girl. Tyne, after the third time trying to get past Ash's guard, growled and lunged, using her weapons and body to latch onto the Warden's left arm.

Ash simply carried Tyne one handed when the girl literally wrapped herself around her arm.

The sisters continued their assault though they were quickly tiring but, just as Ash thought to do more than to passively defend against Obara, Nymeria managed to wrap her silk around Ash's arm. Looking at the silk Ash saw a weight wrapped around that had not been there before. At the other end of the silk Nymeria stood smirking.

"Now!" Obara panted, striking at Ash's greatsword to knock it away.

Rhaenys _pounced_.

The girl, as old as Tyne and only slightly taller, struck with accuracy, hitting the Warden's hands to force her to drop her greatsword. Once done she closed in, thrusting into vitals against a defenseless Ash.

Until the Warden used Tyne, still hanging onto her left arm, as a shield.

"Ack! Rhaenys!" Tyne squealed when Rhaenys poked at her back.

Nymeria tried to pull Ash's arm away but no matter how well she grounded herself or how hard she pulled, the Warden was simply unmoving. After a few futile attempts, with a single tug, Ash pulled Nymeria off balance sending the girl to the sand.

Obara, seeing the situation deteriorate, mustered the last of her energy for a final attack.

Which ended with her spear caught by Ash's arm and her being lifted off the ground and tossed to the side.

The Warden shrugged Tyne off, the girl finally letting go and falling to the sand with a huff.

All that was left was Rhaenys.

She blew a raspberry "We had you!"

Ash laughed, then lunged and tackled the little princess into a hug and tickle-fest that left her squealing.

"That you did" Ash said after she put Rhaenys on the ground. She looked at all of the girls who were getting up and dusting themselves off "It was very well co-ordinated effort, and it worked. You performed admirably"

They cheered and Ash let them have their moment before quieting them down "But you have much to improve on as well"

She went around and lectured them, pointing out what they did well and what they could have improved. Obara, Rhaenys and Nymeria took the criticisms well but Tyne needed some cajoling by the others to accept her mistakes though she eventually, begrudgingly, did so.

A while later, as Ash was in the middle of giving instructions to Tyne on using a sword and dagger, the Warden felt someone coming from behind her. She smiled as she smelt the scent of peaches.

Hands covered her eyes. "Close your eyes" Elia said and she followed the instruction.

She heard something being moved around, the patter of feet on sand, the gasps of the girls and Rhaenys' excited squeal.

She felt hands on her face again "Open your eyes and look at me"

Ash was greeted to the sight of Elia's warm brown eyes and mischievous smile.

The Warden raised a brow, smile on her lips. "Yes?"

Elia pulled her into an embrace, the difference in their height making her bend down. "Do you remember what I said to you, when you first rescued me?"

Ash tried to remember but after fighting the Mountain, it was a bit of a blur. "No, I do not"

"That I owe you more than I can ever repay" Elia pulled back and gently guided her to her knees "Now though, now I make a start on my promise"

From behind her came Areo Hotah, the musclebound captain of Doran Martell's guard. In his arms was a greatsword which he presented upright.

It was beautiful, was Ash' first thought. Some six feet from point to pommel with a solid, shining, unfullered blade. The prongs of the solid steel guard were angled, forming a wide V. The hilt was steel wrapped in thick, black dyed leather with a bulbous pommel. If she did not know any better it looked like the sword was made entirely out of one piece of steel.

"You say you were never knighted, Lady Ash, due to the situations of your upbringing. Well, let me rectify that"

At a nod from Elia Areo lowered the sword so the point hovered near Ash's right shoulder. Elia pressed it there and kept her hand on it. Around them their witnesses, Oberyn, his children and Rhaenys watched with baited breath.

"Normally one would swear vows when they are knighted. To protect the weak, to uphold the law, to serve loyally. Such vows are wasted on you"

Elia looked directly in Ash's eyes "You have proven to be the best Knight of any age. You defended me and my children even when you did not know who we were, against a creature as formidable as the Mountain. You showed the resolve of the Warrior then." She pressed the tip of the blade onto Ash's shoulder, the lifted it to the other side.

"When I had fallen ill, you took care of me and my children, even my Aegon. You had shown the tender care beloved by the Mother." She repeated the motion of lifting the sword and touching it to the Warden's shoulder each time she spoke.

"Your strength is beyond ken and you have shown stalwart adherence to duty, to protect me and my children, a duty you were not bound to do and did so out of the kindness of your heart. The Smith smiles upon such dedication."

Elia looked at the children gathered and smiled "You share your wisdom with the young ones and you guide them as the Crone would.

I know you hold the virtues of all that makes men good and noble, and in that the Maiden would bless you"

There was a sudden steel in Elia's eyes when she spoke next "When injustice was done upon me, you were swift in its punishment. The Father smiles upon such actions"

Her face softened "And finally, the Stranger. You may not know this Ash but the Stranger is not a deity usually prayed to. His realm is death and the unknown. Yet, I do not believe such things bother you. No, in fact, you are it's very personification"

Ash was too stunned to react, a cocktail of strange new emotions running through her, overwhelming in their intensity. It took her a moment to even remember to breath.

Elia wiped a tear she had not know was there "So, in my power as a Princess of Dorne and the Seven Kingdoms I name thee Knight" She kissed Ash's forehead "Rise a Knight, Ser Ash"

She was pulled to stand by Elia and the sword was presented to her, though it took her a while to even register it was there. Once she got hold of it Ash choked back a surprise sob.

"I...I dont know...what...What is happening?"

Elia hugged her tightly "You are a Knight now, in name and deed. You will have your own colours, your words and your House too if you wish it."

All Ash could do was reciprocate the embrace.

"Congratulations, Ser Ash" Elia kissed her cheek "And thank you"

* * *

Rhaenys giggled happily as she synched the mail skirt up. "Tight enough?" She asked Lady Ash, or rather, _Ser_ Ash.

The woman tugged at the skirt, jingling the rings slightly, then nodded. She picked up a mail shirt next and slipped into that. Rhaenys quickly set about tying the laces at the back.

"A Knight! Im squirting to a Knight!" Then little Princess couldn't help but blurt out.

Ash let out a small laugh "I dont remember taking you as a squire"

Rhaenys blew a raspberry "You were!"

The Warden simply laughed again and waited for Rhaenys to tie up the final knot. Once secured the woman sat down and began slipping into her new set of sabatons. The plate boots were well polished and finely decorated with gold bands, a common theme in the Warden's new set of steel plate armour.

Rhaenys admired the armour, set on a stand next to them, brushing her hand on the breastplate and feeling the thick steel. After Ser Ash was knighted and presented with her new sword the Warden, who Rhaenys saw for the first time in a state of shock, was lead to her room where her new armour awaited her.

Mother had given Ser Ash some privacy to change after which she called for some help to don her armour.

Rhaenys had buzzed in and shut the door.

Now here she was, acting as Ser Ash's squire.

The Warden put on the greaves next, which Rhaenys helped with.

"Rhaenys"

"Hm?" she looked up to her Knight.

Dark, forest green eyes looked down at her. A shade so intense that Rhaenys had never seen in any other person.

A hand brushed her cheek "What does being a Knight mean?"

She blinked, stumped by the question. "Uhm…" then she perked up "You!"

Ser Ash raised brow at her "Hm?"

Rhaenys poked her nose "You! You are the best Knight ever! Like Mama said, you don't need vows, your great already!"

Ser Ash smiled. Rhaenys thought she looked good with a smile, no matter the scars on her lips. "Am I?"

Rhaenys nodded. Of course she was! "Yes, you saved me and Mama and Aegon and you beat Ser Arthur! People said he was the best knight but they didn't know you were there" She finished tying up the greaves and they moved to the cuisses.

"Besides" she continued "You are the strongest person I know, and the nicest. You're never angry and you are the best teacher and...and"

"And?"

She paused for a moment, looking at the laces she was tying, then up at Ser Ash who gave her an inquisitive look.

Then she jumped up and hugged the Warden. "And..and you give us hope"

She felt the Warden's rush of breath on her head "It was really scary getting here, but with you with us it was not as scary. It was fun sometimes actually. That's what I like best about you Ser Ash" She hugged her tighter, trying to convey her feelings through the mail "With you, impossible things aren't so hard anymore"

They sat like that in silence for a long moment, simply embracing each other.

"Thank you" Rhaenys felt a kiss on her forehead and she beamed.

Soon enough they went back to putting on the armour. On went the breastplate and faulds, the rerebraces to protect her upper arms, the vambraces her lower arms. Pauldrons were fitted to her shoulders and she put gauntlets on her hands. Finally her helmet came on, a conical design similar to the one she had previously but this one had the addition of swept back wings on either side.

Ser Ash had a slight chuckle at that, saying something about a 'daubeny', whatever that was.

With each piece donned Ser Ash became more and more like the Knights of the tales, encased in gilded steel and possessing an aura of sheer heroism. The light from the open window shined on her, reflecting off of the polished steel and making it shine all the more.

In that moment, Rhaenys knew she was in the presence of a legend.

She giggled, making Ser Ash look at her with a raised brow.

She jumped and hugged her again.

* * *

"Dragonstone has surrendered"

The news did not surprise Elia. It was inevitable. That Robert had been building a fleet to assault the island fortress was well known and now it seemed he had made his move.

She nodded to Doran who was reading a collection of messages, both raven and courier borne. "Stannis Baratheon was the one to carry out the attack, though it seems a storm had complicated matters. Still, the end result is Rhaella Targaryen and assumedly Viserys are dead" He placed the letter to the side and ate a sweet date from a bowl nearby.

"The plan goes ahead then" she said.

Doran nodded "Yes, the final arrangements have been made"

Elia gave a resigned sigh "I had been enjoying myself here. Nearly fooled myself into thinking all that has happened the last year was a dream"

Doran put a hand over hers "Come now dear sister. We all have made the most of your presence here. Many memories made and all will be cherished"

"Doran I will be walking into exile for as long as my children will have a claim to that throne" she said plainly "And they will not be losing that any time soon"

Doran sighed, features weary "I know Elia. This is why I cherished every moment I have had with you the past few months. Besides, it will hardly be the end." His eyes gleamed suddenly "We Martells remain unbowed and I will not accept this...usurper on the throne so long as you and your children are in danger"

Elia looked at her brother with a leveled gaze "Do you think Dorne will be capable of striking at the throne?"

He sat back against his chair, folding the letter in his hands "In time"

The door to the airy office opened and Oberyn came in, bringing with him a pitcher and wine glasses. "T'is time for a break from the plotting no?"

With a smile Elia took a glass and poured for herself and her brothers.

"Have you heard the recent news on the docks?" Oberyn asked as he took a sip. At the shakes of their heads he elaborated "Apparently more pirates have been sailing in the Narrow Sea, getting bolder and bolder by the day. Slaves are in high demand, well, higher than usual" He held up a hand before they spoke "Worry not, I have already hired two ships to escort our transport"

Elia still looked concerned, a look shared by Doran. "Are you sure that is enough?" she asked.

Oberyn considered "To have more will risk drawing attention with the cover we have. People will start to look at who this Ser Ash is to be hiring so many ships for a 'trading venture'"

She nodded "Very well, I suppose if that is the case"

Doran nodded as well "Let us pray they are not needed"

* * *

They drew a fair number of looks, to be sure, but thankfully none of those looks turned to stares as they walked down the road to the docks, arm in arm and hand in hand. She was armed and fully armoured, the gilding glinting in the sun while Elia and Rhaenys were dressed in what was apparently an 'Astaporian' style which covered them from head to toe in black silk robes, with only a thin lace mesh covering their eyes.

"Take a left" Elia instructed with a whisper and she followed, turning and going through a small crowded street. Stalls lined the side and buyers grouped here and there, looking through the merchants' wares. Though Elia told her the crowd was smaller than usual due to the war Ash couldn't help but feel that there were still too many people for what seemed like such a small area.

Eventually they navigated their way through the crowd and came upon a spot where they overlooked the city's port. A number of ships moored in the harbour and Elia pointed to the one that would take them east, to a different continent.

In more ways than one in her case.

It was slightly wide, made of a dark wood, single masted with square fore and aft castles. The sail was striped white and red bearing the image of a crab.

"The Hardy Claw. Not an elegant name but it fits the ship" Elia commented, gently pulling her and Rhaenys along.

Along the way she noted more of the place of Elia's birth.

It was a mix of a small harbour city and a citadel. Though she hadn't exactly been sightseeing in King's Landing she felt that Sunspear was significantly smaller, though it was no less well fortified with a three layer ring of walls dwarfing most of the buildings they protected. The "Shadow City" as it was apparently called, a place of winding streets, maze-like alleys and only one main road that lead straight into the heart of the settlement.

The two enormous towers, the centrepieces of the city. The Spear Tower, an enormous sandstone structure that seemed to touch the very sky. It had been named well as, sat atop the structure, was gilded steel spear thirty feet high that thrust into the heavens and glimmered in the sun.

The other tower, the Tower of the Sun, though smaller in height was no less grand in its magnificence. It was a palatial complex, the administrative center of the entire Dornish realm. Wide at the base it was built up in layers with each layer getting progressively smaller until it tapered into a tower that was so high it was above the clouds, capped with a golden dome. The main road in the Shadow City lead directly to it.

 _They name things well, the Dornish_ she thought as she craned her neck to look up at the just visible peak.

"I would have loved to have taken you there" Elia said, catching where she was looking "It is an amazing place. The paintings, the sculpture, the history" she spoke with some awe in her tone "The Tower of the Sun holds many treasures of Dorne worth seeing"

Ash nodded "You miss it?"

Elia chuckled mournfully "Yes, yes I do" she took a deep breath and shook her head, tugging them along. "But now is not the time for regrets"

Rhaenys was so entranced by the Tower of the Sun that she stumbled a little when her mother tugged her. "It's beautiful mama" she said, still looking at it as they walked.

"I know my darling, I know. You will see the inside of it some day" Elia looked back at them "You both will"

* * *

Ash accepted the cup and drank the tea inside with an appreciative groan.

"It will only be a short trip, a week at most" Elia patted her shoulder reassuringly.

She grumbled, holding her head in her hand.

"Ive got to go back on deck, Rhaenys is having a little too much fun running around"

"Mhhmm..."

Elia patted her shoulder again and left the cabin.

She did not know how long she was sat there, nursing her rebelling stomach, until she heard a noise that made her perk up.

One of the chests started to shake.

She took her sword, walked over and struck the lock then kicked it open.

Three faces looked sheepishly up at her.

"What are you doing here?" She asked the Sand sisters as they struggled to get of the chest they had somehow stuffed themselves in.

Some shouting, biting and tussling later, the three girls were sat on their knees in front of her.

"Well?"

They looked between each other, each unwilling to speak first.

She tapped her foot.

Obara shoved Nymeria out in front.

"Agh! You...!" The girl made to slap at her sister but then remembered where she was, turning to face the Warden. "Uhm..well, we uhm…"

Ash cleared her throat.

"We wanted to come with you!" she blurted out.

The Warden paused. "What?"

She scratched her head sheepishly "Well, we heard our father talking about sending you, Rhaenys and Princess Elia away just yesterday. We couldn't believe it at first but then we saw you leave the Gardens!"

"Yeah!" Tyne spoke up "Why are you leaving? Rhaenys was like a sister to us and you are a better teacher than any father has gotten. Princess Elia was..was.." The girl suddenly couldn't find it in her to speak, clamming up and looking down at the floor.

"Was like a mother to us" Obara finished, putting her hand on Tyne's shoulder.

Ash sighed and sat back, relaxing her posture "I will have to tell the ship to sail back, thankfully we are only a few days out of port-"

"No!" All three shouted at once.

Ash raised a brow "Why wouldn't I do that?"

"Because we want to come with you! Wherever you are going, we want to be with you as well" Obara spoke with her usual passion.

"Do you even know where we are going? Why we are leaving? What about your father, what will he think of this?"

That seemed to have deflated her somewhat but it clear from the look on her face she was thinking up something to say.

"Well, at least tell us why you're going away…" Tyne grumbled out.

Ash sighed once more "It is for the Princess' safety"

Their eyes widened "What?!"

"If you wish to truly know more, you will have to ask Elia. Just know that this was done to keep them safe"

"But from who?!" Obara clenched her hands into fists "Who would hurt our sister!?"

Ash was about to reply when a call came from outside the cabin "PIRATES!"

Instantly she was up on her feet, greatsword in hand. "Stay here" she told the Sand sisters as she left the cabin.

* * *

There were two ships approaching on opposing sides, seemingly heading for their escorts. Both were of a design similar to The Hardy Claw though their sails looked like they were made from an assortment of colours.

"Saan Pirates!" The man on the crows watch called out "Thirty archers on both front castles!"

Their own ships weren't idle as men scurried along the deck and archers and crewmen, along with a handful of dedicated marines, took their positions for battle.

"Ser Ash" Elia came up next to her, Rhaenys firmly in hand "We're going to our cabin, are you going to be alright up here?"

 _Could she fight on the ship?_ Was the unspoken question.

Ash nodded. "I will"

She had to.

"Very well, good luck" Elia hesitated a moment, a moment which Rhaenys used to hug her.

Ash patted her head "Go on"

Elia nodded to her and left, worry still in her eyes.

Ash focused on the pirate ships as she went to stand by the captain of the Hardy Claw, a man named Opi.

"What are we facing?" she asked

He grumbled through his thick, black beard "Saan's boys. Bit better sorted than most pirate scum. I reckon there'd be 'bout fifty men in each ship"

She noted the concern in his expression "What is it?"

Opi shook his head "It aint right. They wouldn't attack without an advantage" he peered at the island ahead of them, squinting his eyes to slits "...too obvious…" he muttered.

"CLOSING IN!" The man in the crows nest shouted.

The two pirate ships with their colorful sails drew ever closer, one propelled faster by advantageous wind.

She steadied her breathing and tried to ignore the churning in her stomach.

A sharp noise drew her attention to one of the pirate ships, where an archer had fired off a whistling arrow only metres before they closed with their target.

"That's a signal" Captain Opi grumbled out, then cursed a storm as, emerging from behind the island, were two galleys rowing straight for them.

Her sword was in her hands by instinct.

"Care for 'em, Ironborn those are. Bunch 'a vicious cunts"

"Captain, orders!" The bosun called out.

Captain Opi did a quick survey of the battlefield once more "Imma lead my men, yer pardon yer lordship"

Ash nodded and waited form the enemy to come.

What had been a sunny day had gradually turned to cloudy skies though thankfully the waters remained calm. Still though, she had to use her sword to keep herself steady on the deck.

 _ **They have asked for death. Deliver it to them.**_

She ignored the voice in her head, focusing on the galleys rowing ever closer.

The crew of the Hardy Claw prepared themselves, listening to the deep grumble of their captain. The archers on the forecastles strung their bows and readied their arrows and the handful of marines, men with armour, swords and shields, grouped up at the center of the deck, stretching their arms and checking their weapons.

The galleys rowed closer. They brought drumbeats with them, louder and louder until it started to sound like thunder in synch with their rowing.

"Archers!" Captain Opis bellowed out.

The archers notched their arrows and drew their bows.

The galleys came well within range.

"Loose!" came the order.

A volley of arrows sailed through the sky into the galleys but they were prepared, having raised their shields to block most of the shots. More volleys followed, the thrum of strings audible as they loosed their projectiles. Some hit, with at least one pirate falling over and into the ocean but soon enough the Ironborn closed the distance.

A javelin speared an archer through his chest and the man went down with a gurgle. All across the bow iron hooks attached themselves as the ironborn clambered up the ship.

She sprung into action, cleaving a head in half as as it crested the railing. She struck the hook sending the men attached to it crashing back to their ships.

A javelin was thrown at her as she looked over, sailing by her head with a whoosh of air.

The pirates were starting to get on the decks and it was clear they had sent their best fighters first. Heavily armed with axes and swords, and armoured in chainmail, helmets and shields they pushed the initial crew back before being stopped by the equally equipped marines.

Made to assist the marines but she couldn't find her footing fast enough before a pirate surged from below and forced her back.

He was tall, muscled and armed with two axes. He yelled a challenge at her and charged.

She blocked his first overhead blow but she was forced back even further. She tried to counterattack, lunging from a near static position which struck him in the chest but there was little power behind the blow, only scratching his mail.

He laughed "Ah hah! Little tin cunt haven't found its sea legs?"

She roared and charged him, swinging her sword in a wide arc "TE SECABO!"

The pirate suddenly found himself on the defensive and it was only his better footwork that saved his arm from being severed. Instead he jumped back, the Warden's blade scraping along his chest. Ash followed up, stepping forward with another swing and forcing the man back further.

Frustration welled up inside her that she tried her hardest to suppress. She couldn't move without having to think about where she put her feet, she couldn't advance without the fear of slipping.

Her blade was also not carving into her enemy which was the main contributor to her anger.

 _ **STRIKE HIM!**_

She tried nonetheless though.

The pirate maneuvered to the side to give himself more space and then jumped in for another double overhead swing which she blocked, this time with her feet planted. In the single moment when the pirate just realised she wasn't forced back and his feet just hit the floor she reached out and grabbed him.

Her hand secured his thick beard and she threw him onto the floor. Before he could roll away her sword struck his head, cracking his skull and splitting his face in two.

Her victory was short lived however as more pirates boarded the ship. The second galley had grappled on and the crew were slowly starting to be outnumbered. Arrows and javelins flew through the air in every direction and dead men's blood made the deck a slippery arena to fight in.

So she used her sword as a crutch, planting it in the wood and moving forward until she reached her target, a group of pirates that were flanking the marines.

She took out one with a wide swing but it unbalanced her, enough for the group to turn and attack her instead.

She tried to keep the distance, striking another down but they rushed past her guard. Her only defence was her armour, their blows raining down but failing to pierce the hardened steel. In turn she grappled those foolish enough to get within reach but she could not finish them, only send them out of the fight temporarily with a throw or a punch to the throat.

She was still surrounded though, and increasingly losing her footing.

As well as her temper.

 _ **Kill them! Kill them! Kill them!**_

"IM TRYING!" She yelled and swung wide striking two down with one blow, clearing space in front of her for another swing which cut off a man's arm, and his shoulder too.

The pirates facing her paused a little at that display.

It was enough for her to continue her attack, killing another, then another before the pirates changed tack and formed a shieldwall.

All three of them.

Her blade, her new, gifted blade, swung through the air.

Then through iron, skin, muscle and bone.

The headless formation stood still for a moment, then collapsed.

The Warden looked around at the chaos before her.

 _ **What are you waiting for? KILL THEM ALL!**_

She growled, then yelled and screamed as she ploughed into a group of pirates, sword first.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that is that.**

 **Ash is knighted in a proper ceremony and receiving new equipment. The style I had in my mind that suited her was along the lines of 'simple, elegant and practical'. Maybe the helmet and gilding was a bit stylish but i'll chalk that up to Elia wanting to get the best money can buy.**

 **The sword I actually made in For Honor. It is the Aleister Blade, Gardakan Hilt and Rogan Guard.**

 **I also try and portray her having developed a sense of personality during her stay, meeting and teaching the Sand Snakes and Rhaenys and just generally trying to live a 'normal' life.**

 **But such development is not without consequences, as we may or may not find out.**

 **Anyway, thank you for reading! If you have any feedback please feel free to review!**


	12. Chapter 12-Saviours

**A/N: Welp, this came out later than it really should have. I got hooked into League of Legends in a big way and was afflicted with ladder fever which means I was bashing my head straight up the rankings.**

 **Like I said, im a very lazy person.**

 **Also, new season yayyy!**

 **Also, as usual thank you for the reviews, favourites and follows!**

* * *

" _Storm the Keep" The Demon pointed with her talons. "Eliminate the archers in the towers"_

 _She nodded, along with the rest of the Black Guard._

 _Her comrades._

 _Her rivals._

 _They departed soon after, going their separate ways after the briefing._

 _Mercy opened the flap to her tent. "When the mission starts, follow me"_

 _She nodded._

 _When they assembled for the assault she spotted the Peacekeeper but made no move to stand next to her._

 _Not while the Demon was watching them._

 _Soon enough the order was given. Siege engines pummeled the keep, stone smashing against stone and bodies screaming as they were crushed in between._

 _They sprang into action as the ladders were laid against the walls._

 _She clambered, black painted armour deflecting arrows that came her way. Once she reached the walls the soldier that saw her first became her first victim, being thrown over her shoulder as she came over the ladder._

 _The defenders were stalwart, but they were tired from months of siege and they were facing the best of the Blackstone._

 _Yet they were not Iron Legion for nothing._

 _Wardens and Lawbringers burst out of the towers to engage them, paragons of duty and steadfastness against the vanguards of war._

 _Black plate clashed against grey steel._

 _Neither yielded._

" _You shame the Warden name" Her opponent said to her._

 _She replied by smashing her guard into the enemy's face._

 _She attacked with ferocity, overwhelming her enemy with a flurry of strikes that sent the Warden reeling until their footing slipped, giving her the chance to finish the fight with a decisive blow that tore the Wardens head from their shoulders._

 _She was not the only one enjoying success, as all along the wall the rest of the Black Guard bested their enemies in personal combat._

 _She spotted Mercy, the Peacekeeper having finished off a Conqueror whose body tumbled down from the walls._

 _However, as she made her way over, more enemies arrived to blunt their attack._

 _And surround her only friend._

 _She squashed the blossoming worry in her stomach and concentrated on repelling the two Conquerors arrayed before her._

 _They were a team, that much was apparent as she traded blows with them. One covered the other as they attacked and any opening was quickly covered. She tried to push on nonetheless, working her angles of approach and trying to separate them but in the tight confines of the walls, it was a difficult task._

 _Beyond the Conqueror wall, Mercy was being hard pressed._

" _Stand Aside!" She rushed and barged one's shields out of the way but the other intervened before she could follow up, knocking her back with a shield bash._

 _Their flails whirled and whirled, near enough impossible to dodge both._

 _Slowly they chipped away at her, spiked balls smashing into her plate again and again leaving dents and bruises._

 _She growled, frustrated anger building as she tried and failed to find a way past them._

 _Mercy screamed in pain._

 _Something snapped within her. She roared, swinging fierce and wild._

 _Her greatsword became entangled with the chains of both weapons and she pulled and tugged in a battle of strength._

 _But she had the advantage: she could still use her weapon._

 _With a forceful tug, she brought one closer to her._

 _With a thrust, she finished him._

 _The other dropped his weapon and pulled out a dagger as she struggled to get her weapon back out of the man it was in._

 _The conqueror charged._

 _They grappled._

 _She was slammed to the floor, the conqueror choking her._

 _She struggled, air refusing to go into her lungs._

 _Her vision turned blue. Her hearing became muffled._

 _Suddenly she felt as if she was being lifted. The conqueror was pulled up and her along with them._

 _A sword burst out of the conquerors chest._

 _The pressure eased on her throat._

 _As the body fell to the side, a blood-drenched Mercy appeared before her, reaching out and pressing a hand to her chest._

Water rushed out of her lungs as she coughed, hacking liquid.

"Whoa there" Someone beside her said "Come on now, easy does it. Just let it all out"

Ash gave another cough, more water splashing onto the deck. She heaved great breaths in exchange as she sat up onto her knees.

"What...happened?" she spoke with a hoarse voice.

"Well, you went overboard m'lord, er, lady"

She did. She remembered how the Ironborn swarmed the ship and that no matter how many she killed they pushed her back. Back and back and over the ship, sword lodged onto a dead man…

"Elia!" She jumped to her feet, heedless of the pieces of armour she scattered "Where is Elia!?"

The sailors looked nervously around at each other and she recognized quickly that the ship she was on was not the Hardy Claw.

Dread began to pool in her stomach.

"Where is Elia?" She repeated, voice like ice.

"Uhm, well" the man who had been speaking to her was apparently the captain, going by how the crew deferred to him "the Claw was…" his eyes looked from left to right "...taken"

She had the man by his shirt before she even realised she had done it. "Explain"

"Ah...er...eh…" He hesitated.

She lifted him up "Ah! Ah! Ah! The pirates took the Claw! They took the ship!"

The captain hung in the air as Ash stood frozen, stiff as a statue.

 _No...no...no…_

"Ah...um..Ser, Lady...er...maybe put me down now?"

Ash slumped back down to her knees and the captain took the opportunity to extract himself from her grip.

"Ah...well...sorry for yer loss..." He said as he backed away.

Ash was silent and unmoving for a long, long moment.

The captain looked at his crew, particularly at his bosun but the portly, bearded man only offered a shrug and a questioning shake of a flask. The rest of the crew were equally as useful, shrugging and shaking their heads or otherwise openly staring at the Knight.

The awkward atmosphere festered, the only sound being the gulls and the few crew working. Just as the captain was about to suck it up and approached Ash again the knight suddenly stood up. So abrupt was the movement that the captain let out a surprised yelp and flinched back.

"Ha..ha..well, if I beg your pardon Ser, er, my Lady, we're going to sail back to port…" The captain said nervously.

Ash turned her gaze toward him and he stood frozen. "You will follow the pirates"

"Eh?"

"You will follow them" she repeated.

"But Ser…" The captain hesitated under her gaze "Um..while you did a good number on them, and I daresay they won't be sailing 'round here no more, we're not exactly in the best shape to go chasing down pirates ourselves" He indicated to his crew, some of whom were sporting bandaged wounds. "My boys got roughed up and were not at uh, at...full capacity, shall we say"

Ash stared at him, then turned to look down where she saw her blade, lodged inside the body of an Ironborn warrior. A net was sprawled out on the deck beneath, along with pieces of her armour.

Her sword glinted under the sun.

She put her hand around the handle.

"Take your wounded on a boat and row them back. The rest will pursue"

Absolute silence reigned on the ship. Even the birds seemed to sense the tension as their cries faded away.

"Excuse me?"

"Take the wounded and get them ashore. The rest will chase" She repeated.

The captain blinked, stupefied and slightly offended . "Ah, beggin yer pardon Ser, but I am the Captain of th-"

 _Squelch. Thud._

Ash pulled the sword out of the pirate's body and slammed it on the deck.

"How many pirates lay at the bottom of the sea thanks to this blade?"

"Ah...uh...a lot?"

She made a show of looking around, meeting the eyes of the crew.

"And how many are required to crew a ship this size" She said as she returned her gaze to the Captain.

The Captain and The Warden shared an unbroken, unblinking staredown for a long minute before the Captain turned away and sighed, and swore under his breath.

"Right. Alright!" He called to his crew "Detour lads, load the wounded onto a boat. Gendry and Percy you row back to shore, take some supplies with you, and a bow and signal arrows. It's only a day out so god's willing there's some other ships on the way back" He looked over his shoulder at Ash and sighed "Rest of ya, we're going pirate hunting"

* * *

Obara was trained to fight.

When she saw the options available to her as a woman, her weapons to fight through the struggle of life, she chose her father's spear over her mother's tears.

It was a choice she did not regret, for she knew the world was a harsh one despite all its beauty. Even if she loved her home and she knew she could always count on her family, they were but a speck of what was out there.

And she wanted to know what was out there.

She listened when her father told his stories of his adventures in foreign lands, of the places he had visited and the things he had seen.

She wanted to visit and see them herself; the great Titan of Braavos, the pyramids of Meereen, and the pillow houses of Lys.

So she trained, and she trained hard.

Yet, for all that, she could not prevent the capture of her family.

She tried though, oh Gods did she try.

Her fractured ribs and bruised and bloodied face was a testament to that.

Obara breathed with a wince, holding tightly onto Nymeria while Tyne was at her side. Behind her sat Rhaenys, clutching at her back and doing her best to stifle her shaking and quiet her sobs.

The physical pain was manageable. She had broken bones before. She was cut and bruised before.

The thing that bothered her the most, that struck at her heart, was the fact that her siblings, and she counted Rhaenys and Aegon amongst them, were terrified.

 _That_ she could do nothing about, and it hurt her more than any wound on her body.

They were locked inside the cabin that was once the Claw's guest room but was now its makeshift brig after the Ironborn had stormed and made off with the ship. They were "valuable prisoners", to be sold unspoiled as "virgin" Westerners.

She was thankful for Lady Elia's quick thinking and acting in that regard, which saved them all from a much, much grimmer fate. Obara would have smiled when the woman claimed them as her own, thus protecting them by the value of her 'noble' blood, if the situation was not so horrendously dire.

Rhaenys let out a little sob behind her.

"Shhh sweetling, shhhh" Lady Elia tried to comfort the little girl, rubbing circles on her back but it was a futile effort. The girl was inconsolable.

Not that Obara could blame her.

Lady Ash had been defeated.

They overheard their captors speak about a knight that ripped the ranks of the Ironborn to shreds, killing their best warriors and at least one captain before being thrown overboard.

Obara shook her head, refusing to think on it further. There was already too much to deal with.

They had been locked in here for what felt like weeks, though the room had no windows with which to help tell the time. She had tried counting how many times they had slept as a way to get a bearing but that was not at all useful considering how little of it they had gotten.

She winced as she took another breath. The room stank of sweat and piss and shit, the unsanitary conditions not at all helping her Lady's quickly ailing state. The woman tried to hide it but even in the dim light Obara could see how pale she was starting to get and how sweaty she was becoming. The Lady still fed her baby though, so she and her sisters agreed that most of their food would go to Lady Elia.

Their hosts were not the most accommodating of people.

The door to their prison opened revealing a group of Ironborn.

Lady Elia was immediately in front of them.

"What?" She demanded. "Have you sent my letter? I have told you before my family will pay a handsome ransom for-"

"Be silent woman!" One of the islanders shouted and Obara moved in front of the Lady, anticipating violence.

Which came when the Ironborn seized her.

Pandemonium ensued in the small cabin as the Dornishwomen resisted the pirates who were manhandling them. They screamed, clawed, bit and punched but in the end, with more pirates rushing in, they were eventually subdued and forcibly dragged out.

Obara's ribs protested against the treatment but she muffled her screams, mostly by biting into a man.

Eventually they were dragged kicking and screaming to the deck of the Hardy Claw where Obara could finally see where they were.

She struggled even harder.

A giant, golden harpy stared down at her with blank, unblinking eyes, sat atop an imposing pyramid.

The pirate holding her pinned her arms and winded her with a headbutt to her spine, stifling her resistance as she fought to get her breath back.

"You are fools to sell us here!" Lady Elia shouted "My family will pay triple the price of any cursed slaver! Send the letter, for all your sakes-!"

The pirate holding the Lady clamped his hand over her mouth, big and wide enough so she could not find purchase to bite. Aegon was seized from her hands and the woman went berserk, kicking and shouting so much that it needed two men to keep her still.

Obara's siblings likewise fought and struggled at the sight, and were likewise bound and gagged, all of them being slwoly brought along to the gangplank lowered to the pier.

Before they could get off the ship however a group of Lyseni pirates, and Obara knew they were Lyseni because of their ridiculous looks, walked up the gangplank and blocked their way.

"Hold it there islander" The leader held out his hand "What do you think yer doing with OUR prisoners?"

"YOUR prisoners is it now?" The Ironborn captain sneered "Considerin the fact that WE lost more than you pissly little cunts, we're the ones making the sale"

The Lyseni spat on the deck "Fuck your losses! Not our fault you dumb shits couldn't take a single greenlander knight. Now hand over the prisoners, we sell to MY contact and we split the money like we agreed"

The Ironborn were not amused. "Go fuck yourself" The islander Captain stepped up and shoved his Lyseni counterpart away "I got a new deal, better for us so get out of my face before I split your head open. Your shitty "deal" aint foolin nobody. We bled for this while you pansied about. Convenient that aint it?"

The Lyseni put his hand on the pommel of his weapon "You're making a stupid mistake islander"

The Captains stared each other down, the atmosphere tense. The crews faced off, the Lyseni ships on either side of the Hardy Claw.

Obara didnt see what started it. She only saw that the Lyseni captain was struck down.

Her world was quickly consumed by shouting, and blood.

She slipped free of her captor by smashing the back of her head to his nose and crawling away.

She tried to navigate the chaos on the deck but it was a difficult task. Lyseni and Ironborn fought in a bloody melee, a whirling tide of steel and slaughter with no respite. She saw an islander fall with his head flying, a Lyseni speared with a javelin as he swung onto the ship, two more Lyseni felled by a single greataxe swing.

The Ironborn were outnumbered, but they were more heavily armed.

In the middle of it all was Obara.

A hand seized her wrist and she reacted on instinct, snapping with a quick jab.

Nymeria's head snapped back as Obara caught her on the cheek.

"Fuck!"

The curse came out of both sisters' lips.

"Fuck, fuck, come on!" Nymeria dragged Obara along, nursing her cheek "We have to find the others!"

Obara tried her best to keep an eye out, which was how she caught a glimpse of silver hair. "Rhaenys!" She shouted, pulling Nymeria to a stop "I saw Rhaenys!"

"Lady Elia is over there!" Nymeria pointed in the opposite direction.

They looked at each other, a single moment of indecision before Obara let go of her sister's hand "Get Lady Elia and find Tyne, we'll meet on the docks somewhere"

She took off before Nymeria could say anything. Before she could change her mind.

Obara weaved through the fighting as best she could, and took a little vengeance when opportunity presented itself. Many pirates suddenly found themselves on their knees or with a knife to the back of their necks as she ran through them, following the glimpses of silver hair.

Her heart thumped, adrenaline carrying her legs forward and dulling the pain in her ribs. She was so close now, she could see that it was Rhaenys, being carried away by a Lyseni. The little girl struggled her best but she was only a child and had a child's strength.

Obara pushed forward, closing the distance, so close she could reach out and get a touch of Rhaenys' hair.

Rhaenys also saw her, her silver eyes, stained red with tears, going wide.

"HELP!" She _shouted_.

The pirate carrying the little princess stumbled at the sudden scream in his ear.

Obara tackled him to the ground sending them all stumbling. She scrabbled on top of him throwing wild punches to keep him down before her knees found purchase and she grabbed his head and proceeded to smash his face against the deck.

 _Crunch. Crunch._

 _Smack._

An elbow slammed into her ribs and she cried out in pain, falling off the pirate who turned to face her, his face bloody courtesy of a broken nose. He pinned her to the deck and began to smash his fists against her face. One blow and then another rained down on her.

To her cheek, to her her eyes, to her temples, jaw, mouth, nose.

The pain was overwhelming, consuming every one of her senses. Her arms, crossed in front of her face, felt like lead weights, ready to drop at any moment.

She couldn't see. She couldn't move. She couldn't breathe.

Through her bleary, bloodied eyes she saw the pirate raise his fist once more.

 _No…._

His fist came down.

Time slowed to a crawl.

A sword smashed into the pirates face with all the grace of a flying hammer.

Obara saw a pair enchanting, beautiful purple eyes and she felt like laughing.

All that came out of her mouth was a wheeze.

Rhaenys was saying something, pulling her by the hand but she couldn't hear and she couldn't get up.

 _Come on, move. Move!_ _Go!_

Her mind's urging had some effect and she managed to sit up before she slumped, only Rhaenys holding onto her keeping her up.

"-bara. Obara! Get-! You h-e to -et up!" Rhaenys was yelling in her ear, the words broken, coming in and out of her hearing.

She leaned forwards, putting her hands onto the deck and pushing with all her might.

Her hand slipped and she stumbled.

Rhaenys slipped her arm over her shoulder, helping her steady herself.

Her limbs shook as she put them under strain, slowly but surely getting back onto her feet.

Rhaenys supported her, leading her as far away from the ongoing battle as they could get. Thankfully the pirates were too busy fighting each other to pay attention to them, though the fighting meant that the main way off the ship, the gangplank, was blocked to them.

It was not the only way off, however.

"Whaenys" She slurred, pointing to the rigging "Wopes, shwing to the next shwip"

"I-I dont know how" the girl said, voice shaky.

Stumbling over she grabbed a free piece of rope, gave it a pull and handed it over to Rhaenys "Hold it like thisss" She made sure the little Princess had a secure grip before she took a deep breath and lifted the girl onto the railing. Purple eyes looked at her with worry.

She tried to smile, to assure the girl, but her entire face ached in protest and the effort was enough to bring tears to her eyes.

Grabbing the rope, Obara secured her hold on Rhaenys and stood on the edge of the ship.

She looked over her shoulder, at the chaos on the deck of the Hardy Claw, trying to see through bloodied eyes where her sisters or her Lady was.

She couldn't see them. There was too much going on.

She looked at the deck of the ship across from them. It was empty.

She swallowed, secured her hold on Rhaenys, muttered a prayer, and swung.

* * *

Elia felt utterly exhausted.

Her entire body strained to even keep moving, to keep itself up and to not collapse.

Her head ached and she was sure she felt a fever coming on.

Nevertheless, she kept going.

She had to.

With a wounded Tyne on her back and her son crying in his swaddle, she had to.

The brave little girl, the same age as her own daughter, thrust herself into danger to protect her and to save her son, and it was a near fatal thing.

A cut across Tyne's chest leaked blood onto her back, the quick patch up job she applied starting to wear thin. Her only solace was the fact that she could still hear and feel her niece breathing.

It was shallow, and slow, but she was breathing.

"Up ahead my Lady, a main street" Nymeria said, leading the way.

Elia smothered her concern for the girl's left arm which she cradled close to her chest. There were more urgent needs.

The alley they had been running through did indeed open up into a main street, filled with people.

Some of whom turned to stare at them.

"Help me!" She said in her best Valyrian "My child is hurt, please, help me!"

Those who heard her looked between each other, unsure or not understanding. Some moved away and Elia felt her heart drop but before she could ask for help again a pair approached her, an old woman in blue silk robes and a younger man by her side.

"You. Come, come!" The woman beckoned with a finger and Elia obeyed, though she kept her eyes on the the young man's hands.

"My child is injured from a cut and she's bleeding, the other has a broken arm" The desperation in her voice was clear "please, if you know anyone that can help please-"

She was cut off as the old woman took her by the hand "Follow" She commanded. Turning to the young man the old woman spoke sharply in Ghiscari, gesturing to Nymeria.

"He carry" she simply said.

Nymeria hesitantly climbed onto the lad's back and they followed the surprisingly springy old woman through the streets of the city of pyramids.

"Lady...Elia…?" Tyne whispered with laboured breath.

Elia squeezed the child's legs "Yes my love, im here. We're going to get help right now so stay awake will you?"

"Huh….hmmm…" Tyne mumbled tiredly.

"Come now my love, just stay awake for a little while longer. I promise I will teach you how to sing, wouldn't you like that?"

"Hmmm...mumhm.."

She squeezed Tyne's legs again and whispered a prayer.

Eventually the old woman led them to a two storey building where, inside, there were two young men that looked like brothers to the one carrying Nymeria. They were barbers it appeared, for one was in the middle of cutting hair.

The old woman barked out something in Ghiscari and it was only a moment of confusion before the young men were hurrying Elia along to a back room where they instructed her to lay Tyne down onto a table. The young man carrying Nymeria gently let her down onto a chair and began to inspect her arm.

"They help" The old woman said as she followed them into the room "Good with hands" she made a scissoring motion.

"Here" she took Elia by the hand again and sat her down "Sit. Rest. Pray"

The Princess couldn't fight it even if she wanted to. The moment she sat down she slumped back onto the hard wooden chair, all her strength leaving her. Aegon however quickly reminded her that she could not rest just quite yet.

"Here" the old woman handed her a cup of wine which she drank eagerly, and was quickly refilled, as she calmed her baby boy down.

"Thank you" she whispered, hugging Aegon tight and rocking the toddler who's tears had thankfully run dry "Thank you"

The old woman pulled up a seat next to her and patted her arm "Rest now. Son's sons help. Good boys"

Elia smiled though she did not dare close her eyes, instead watching her nieces like a hawk. The barber surgeons went to work in treating her youngest niece, undressing her to reveal the sickening cut across her chest. Various tools were brought out: vials of strong alcohol, needles and thread and a host of other things. Nymeria had an easier time of this, though she could tell the girl was putting on a brave face as the young man tending to her bound her arm with a splint.

She took another gulp of wine, wiping the sweat from her brow.

"Name?" The old woman pointed to her nieces.

It took Elia a moment to reply "The little one is Tyne. The older is Nymeria" She looked down at her son, at his tear stained face and unhealthy pallor. She suppressed the sob that threatened to break out at the sight.

 _I am so sorry, my little one. I am so, so sorry_.

The old woman slowly put her hand over her shoulder, looking at her with kind eyes.

She blinked "Oh. Sorry" she shook her head "I am...Elia, this is Aegon"

The old woman looked down at her son. "He need food"

Elia's eyes lit up "Please, I know I ask much but if you can get anything-"

The old woman cut her off with a hand and an assuring nod. "Yes, yes" She got up "I be quick"

She left the room in a hurry.

The Princess kept her eyes open until they weaved the final stitch in Tyne's wound, until Aegon finally tired himself out, after which she took a moment to lean back and close her eyes, breathing a sigh of relief.

She fell asleep almost immediately.

Later, Elia learned that the Grandmother's name was Zyni and her grandsons were Mahan, Zimahr and Masneil. The latter two were the barber-surgeons while the former was the one that had been accompanying his grandmother to the market.

Zyni was a generous host, giving them the use of a room in her home which was an enormous boon as the fever Elia felt during her escape had hit and rendered her bedridden. Tyne for her own health was put in Zyni's room which left Nymeria the only one of the Dornishwomen on her feet. Aegon was put in a makeshift crib next to Elia's bed and was fed by a nursemaid Zyni found.

Any attempts to search for her eldest niece and her own daughter had to be put on hold however as Zyni refused to let Nymeria out with her injury. She had assured them however that her grandsons were on the lookout, though that did little to soothe her panic.

Not for the first time did Elia curse her own weak constitution.

The door to her room opened and Zyni entered carrying a tray of food and drink which she put down by her bedside

"Drink" Zyni brought a homebrew concoction to her mouth, a bitter herbal drink with a strong lemony taste. Elia drank without complaint though. She knew enough about sickness remedies to know that this one had some ingredients she recognized.

"Have your grandsons found my other children yet?"

Zyni shook her head "They search now. Young one go with them"

Elia blinked in surprise "Nymeria is out there?"

Zyni smiled a rueful smile "She supposed to bring drink"

* * *

Nymeria grit her teeth, both in pain and frustration. The former came from her arm which, though treated, still throbbed occasionally. The latter came from the fact that, in the second day since they had been taken in by Lady Zyni, they had still not found neither hide nor hare of Obara or Rhaenys.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid" she muttered to herself "What were you thinking, going off alone?"

She felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned to see Mahan looking at her with a worried expression. She sighed and shook her head, brushing off his concern and moving on ahead.

She quickly realised she had no idea where she was going and waited for Mahan to take the lead once more.

A small part of her thought it was stupid of her to even leave the house. She had no idea where she was even looking other than around the docks, and the potential to be recaptured was a constant worry in her mind. Her injuries caused her pain and she had had no time to recover.

Most of her though wanted to find her sisters. She wanted to see them, to kiss and hug them and smack Obara in the face for going off on her own.

She touched the fading bruise that Obara had left on her face and prayed once more that they would find them, safe and sound.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, there you have it. The group is now separated in a foreign place so we will see how they go about coping with it. Adventure pairings ahoy! I already have a team name for RhaeBara, gotta think of names for the rest.**

 **Also, im going to address the first angry critic I got, which is nice in its own way because it means someone cares enough about the fic to shout at me over the internet for it. It also allows me an opportunity to talk about my writing in general which may or may not be prudent to know. This is going to be a long one so feel free to skip it, it is just self reflection and an elaborate way of saying I'm a lazy turd.**

 **Whoever this person is, they are right in some ways. The last chapter was a bit lacklustre I admit , I was especially not too fond of the ending that I definitely rushed out. Though I dont understand their complaint about the timeline, they seem to be confusing Ch 10 and 11 there. Though that may have been my fault in not being clear when Apollyon appears, which was supposed to be happening at around the same time as Ash and Elia leave Starfall. Apollyon and Ash did NOT arrive at the same time. Sorry for the confusion if there was any.**

 **Also, they raise a good point on Ash' character development, or rather the lack of it. Eleven chapters in and she really hasn't gotten far from what she was in the first chapter, with her three big character defining points being that she fights well, that she may be schizophrenic and she is growing more and more attached to Rhaenys and Elia. Not a complex character by any means. This is mostly because I struggle to develop a character that is entirely OC. Elia is easier to portray because we have descriptions of her character, Rhaenys is easy because she is a child and they aren't that complicated. Ash is entirely my own creation and I based her on the tragic heroine trope and never really moved away from there despite intending to...eventually™.**

 **This Slavers Bay arc is kind of a chance to address this as she will be on her own and hopefully it will give me a chance to show her outside of the context of the being the Warden to Rhaneys and Elia. I say kind of because I dont actually plan that far ahead, like, I know where I want to get to and what I want to be happening in the big picture but the little details I dont tend to think about. Which is how we end up with minimal character development and sweet ass fight scenes, which relates to the next point.**

 **The fact that I tend to move stuff along or skip things. This is mostly because in lieu of actually learning good pacing and the fact that I when I feel I am slowing things down I get bored, I prefer to move things along. I know I can add so much more but for most of the time I write I kinda fail to see the opportunity to insert potential development seamlessly AND move the plot along. So I choose one over fussing about with trying the other.**

 **What will I do to address this? Well, this relates to why I started writing and why I continue to write this story.**

 **It is because I enjoy it, I especially enjoy writing the fight scenes, for me they are the highlights of the fic. This is why they are so prevalent and elaborated, I just love them. Also I justify it as being a For Honor crossover so gotta have fight scenes in there right?**

 **Anyway, I write because I enjoy it and also because I want to stroke my own ego (which I do, with unabashed glee). I really do appreciate the reviews, favourites and follows, I do a little happy dance every time I get one of those.**

 **What does this have to do with addressing issues with the fic? Well, I want to keep enjoying it, thus because I am lazy and I am really quite content overall with how things are going I may not even change that much. I really dont want to be putting a bunch of effort in because I dont want it to feel like work, or a burden. Obviously I want my story to be better but I realize it's not going to be as long as I dont put the effort in, which I am not that keen to do.**

 **I dont joke when I say im lazy.**

 **I will try to improve, I will, but you would be a fool to believe in the promise of a lazy man.**

 **I am sorry if this disappoint anybody, I do want people to read and actually like my story but I am also aware of my own average writing ability, and im happy with that.**

 **If you enjoy the story as it is, fantastic because I will keep on writing.**

 **All that said, thank you for reading and as always, do please review, favorite and follow.**


	13. Chapter 13-Silver Princess

**A/N:**

 **So, I totally did not forget Aegon existed. If one were to look back at the previous chapter they would see that Aegon was mentioned in a way that made sense and wasnt at all shoehorned in in a panick.**

 **I swear, I am utterly competent and I definitely know what I am doing.**

* * *

Rhaenys kept watch over the alley that was to be their escape route, trying her best to ignore what Obara was currently doing behind her back. Said Sand Sister was currently in the middle of burglarizing her way into a bakery in one of the richer districts of the city, at least, richer compared to the slum they currently called their hideout.

Oh how she hated it, but they had no choice. They tried to ask for help, tried to go to the less crime filled side of town but with how they looked, as ragged and dirty children, all thought they were paupers and treated them such. Some had been nice, giving them coins or bits of food.

Others, not so much.

She still had bruises from the time the guards had kicked them out of the better districts.

And they couldn't go about advertising her heritage either, in case the pirates were still around and to keep under the noses of the Masters. Her hair and eyes were already drawing enough attention as it was, attention that she did not like at all.

Rhaenys sighed. She missed her mother's embraces. She missed Nymeria's jokes. She missed Tyne's pranks.

She struggled to pull back a sob.

She missed Ser Ash.

She couldn't believe that the Knight, _her_ Knight, had fallen. It just wasn't possible!

The pirates were lying, Ser Ash couldn't possibly die, not to them, never to such scum. So they lied, made up a dumb story about how she fell overboard.

Stupid!

Ser Ash was coming for them, she thought.

She held onto that hope as she kept watch for Obara.

She didn't think she could survive otherwise.

The tumble of a lock and the creaking of an opening door alerted the little Princess to Obara's success.

She gulped and prayed that no-one was inside the building. Thievery to keep themselves alive she could handle. Murder on the other hand was another matter entirely. They hadnt yet been caught, but she knew deep down that if they were cornered, Obara would defend them, fiercely.

She didnt want to ask that of a person she considered a sister.

The minutes passed by, agonizingly slowly. Rhaenys jumped at every sight and sound, ready to yell and bolt the moment she even saw the hint of a person. It was so dark out though that she could barely see her own outstretched hand.

But it was a quiet night and Obara had chosen their target well. Soon the Sand sister emerged from the bakery with a stuffed bag.

Her stomach grumbled at the sight.

Quietly they made off with their purloined goods, back through the winding streets and back alleys, following their own little markers and taking care to avoid the more active places.

Even in the night, a city did not sleep.

They eventually reached their hideout, a small alcove where Obara had laid down a few (stolen) blankets. Opening the bag Obara handed her a cold piece of bread that looked like it had been ripped from a bigger piece.

She devoured it, cold, dry, stale and little burnt, washing it down with cheap wine that was too sour on the tongue.

"I tried to find something at least warm Princess" Obara said as she tucked into her own meal "But there was nothing but scraps"

Rhaenys shook her head, "It's okay"

The teen patted her head and gave her a weak smile, face barely visible by the moonlight "We'll find the others soon, I promise"

She smiled, just as weak "I know" she said, "I know"

That night she dreamed of a forest in the sand, the green leaves falling from the branches.

The next morning found the two back out in the streets, continuing their search for their lost family.

"We'll try the markets today. With how busy it should be the guards hopefully won't pester us much" Obara said.

Rhaneys nodded, tired eyes scanning the crowd but she could only see colours. Whites, golds, blacks, blues, browns, a myriad of colour but no faces. She rubbed her eyes and her temples, shaking her head to clear the dizziness.

The world came back into focus.

Obara's bruised face was staring at her, dark brown eyes filled with concern. "Are you okay Princess?"

"Yes, im fine. Let's keep searching"

She could see Obara crush down her own complaint, jaw setting in a way that showed she was grinding her teeth. The teen eventually nodded, squeezing Rhaenys' hand. "Tell me when you get tired, we'll take a break"

The little Princess nodded despite the ache in her body or the heat on her skin or the dizzy spells that made her vision turn to blots. Obara had endured so much, hurt so much already.

She had to be as strong.

So she took big deep breaths, like how Ser Ash had taught her, and forced herself to move.

The pair stuck close together, hand in hand, as they walked through the market. Rhaenys saw all kinds of foreign products on display from fine, shimmering silks and carved animal horns to hides of wild animals that Rhaenys had never seen before. There was one that was striped black and white, another yellow with black spots and even one that was so huge it must have been an elephant's, or a giant's, or a giant elephant's.

In another time, she would have been bounding over to feel them and maybe even bought some just to see how they looked on her.

As it was they barely registered in her vision.

She scanned the crowds looking at women who had their hair showing since the natives covered theirs, trying to spot her mother's long curly tresses, Nymeria's braid or Tyne's short pixie. But there were too many people, too crowded to see properly. The thrum of people here reminded her of Kings Landing, or at least what Kings Landing looked like from atop her room in Maegor's Holdfast. She was never allowed to go in the city.

Shouting, loud enough to cut through the humm of the crowd, made her turn towards a stall where the storekeeper had a waif by her skinny arm, the hand of which was holding an apple. The man was yelling at the poor girl, pulling and jostling. The waif, who looked no older than herself, was struggling to get out of the man's hold but she wasn't looking to be making any success.

Rhaenys stopped making Obara turn to where she was looking.

"It's best if we do not get involved Princess" The Sand sister said as she saw the situation and gently tried to pull her away.

Slowly, though she did not want to, she obeyed.

Until the shopkeeper started beating the girl.

The waif cried out as she was hit once, then twice.

 _No one's doing anything. Someone do something!_

A third time and still no one moved.

She did not know from where she got the energy from, but as she saw the man's fist come up for a fourth blow she managed to sprint the distance and jump on the girl, tackling her out of the way and getting a meaty fist on her back for her troubles.

More shouting ensued, Obara's and the Shopkeepers and a host of other voices.

Rhaenys winced as she rubbed the spot on her back where the fist came down but most of her attention was focused on the waif she had saved.

The girl was thin, worryingly thin, brown skinned and black haired with hazel brown eyes. She wore a woven cloth sack as a dress, and by the wear and tear and stains on it, she had had it for a long while.

Siad brown eyes now looked to her, widened and worried.

Rhaenys smiled "You fine?" she asked in Valyrian.

The waif did not respond but her eyes moved from Rhaenys to look over the little Princes' shoulder. Rhaenys followed her and saw that Obara and the shopkeeper were arguing, each speaking a tongue the other did not understand. What they could understand however was the shopkeeper lifting a fist to strike.

Rhaenys' heart thumped, a sharp beat of fear.

Obara struck like a coiled viper, taking a step back and then delivering a powerful blow right into the man's solar plexus. The larger man went down like a crumbling building and the watching crowd let out a gasp of shock.

Which was enough to alert the guards.

"Shit!" Obara cursed as she turned and ran in their direction, quickly dragging the little Princess away.

Rhaenys in turn grabbed hold of the waif and dragged her along with them.

They were chased through the back alleys, the twisting and turning pathways that they did not know how to navigate. Eventually this lack of knowledge punished them as they ended up in a dead end, with the guards still behind them.

Obara pushed Rhaenys and the waif behind her, tucking them away under an alcove as she squared up to the face the guards to came bounding around the corner.

The guards wore leather armour, loose black trousers and held large greatswords with shortswords and a rod at their hips. There were two of them and when they saw Obara they looked to each other.

Then laughed.

They said something in Ghiscari but once they saw that Obara would remain where she was they shrugged and stowed their greatswords away, bringing out their thick black rods. They made a show of smacking them against their palms as they advanced but Obara stood firm, hands tightened into fists and body set in a fighting stance.

Rhaenys swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to quell the shaking. She scanned the alley for anything of use but she found nothing.

As the guards came close they lunged, swinging down towards Obara.

The Sand sister dodged back and counterattacked with a left hook to the guard's jaw which connected, forcing him back. She dodged the swing from the other guard to her right by stepping to her left, then she struck him as well but the man dodged back. In the small bit of space she made Obara turned to the guard on her left and shoulder barged him onto the ground but she was prevented from following up by being charged herself, right into the wall behind.

Pinned, she struggled, spitting at the guard's eyes forcing them closed and following with a headbutt right between his eyes. The man let out a pained shout and stepped back but a blind swing from his rod caught Obara on the shoulder, sending her stumbling to the side. She stayed on her feet however, mostly by bracing herself against the wall.

The guard that had been barged to the floor found his feet and charged at Obara, swinging his rod. Obara put up her arm to defend but the blow obviously hurt her with how hard she screamed. She pushed past the pain though and struck the guard with a kick to his ribs and a hook to his jaw, the last one missing its mark.

Which left her open to the other guard to came in to her right and smashed down onto her hip.

Obara went down screaming.

"NOOO!"

Rhaenys jumped from her hiding place and ran to throw herself over Obara.

The Sand Sister's eyes widened in shock.

She heard shouting, more voices and the guards' shouting turning to screams.

Rhaenys closed her eyes and buried herself into Obara.

Once second passed, then two, three.

The blow she expected never came and Rhaenys peeked curiously behind her, or tried to. She felt Obara hold her tight against her chest as the teen got up, panting. "Princess, thank you" Obara breathed out.

Rhaenys tried to turn around again but Obara held her in place. "Obara?"

"It's okay Princess, it's okay" She felt Obara's hand shake as she hugged her. "Everything's fine"

She was confused "What happened?"

"It's okay Princess" Obara repeated "I.." she swallowed "I want you to close your eyes"

"Obara?"

"Please Princess, just close your eyes for a moment"

Though she didnt know what was happening or why she was being asked this, she did so. She felt Obara stand, still keeping her close, and slowly she was guided somewhere. After a moment of walking blindly she was allowed to open her eyes again.

They were in an alley somewhere, away from the dead end.

"Obara, what happened?"

Obara turned around and nodded her head "They came and helped out"

Rhaenys peeked around the teen and saw the waif, and three others. All paupers in torn clothing. A tall, lanky teen boy, a younger boy and another girl.

"Oh. Hello"

* * *

The waif's name, Rhaenys later learned, was Larazzla. Her sister was Hashene. The Tall lanky one was Zedar and the boy was Randiq. The little group of paupers had guided them to their hideout after the fight and though Obara proved to be surprisingly reluctant to follow, or even to introduce themselves by their real names, she eventually caved.

The hideout was an abandoned building in the poorer section of the city which the group appeared to have renovated to some degree. Broken windows had either been covered with makeshift curtains or boarded up in a roughshod manner. The interior was relatively clean with sleeping spots marked with old blankets and pillows. The smell remained terrible though, the heady scent of sun-baked rot that Rhaenys remembered from King's Landing.

As a way to break the ice she shared with them their ill-gotten gains from the night before and they seemed appreciative, after they devoured most of the bread. Obara was, again, not too happy and seemed far too tense.

Rhaenys wanted to ask her about it but it seemed that their new companions were the cause, so she decided to hold her questions until they were alone.

Larazzla said something to her in Ghiscari. Rhaenys shrugged and replied "Valyrian?"

The waif's eyes narrowed briefly but the look went away "Small Valyrian" she said, gesturing with her fingers.

Rhaneys smiled and cheered. Though the girl's Valyrian was rough and simple, she could do something with this. "We search, er, look for people"

It took a moment for Larazzla to process but she nodded "Who?"

She glanced to Obara who was watching the lanky teen like a hawk. The sand sister also still held her hand and did not seem to want to let go.

"Our friends" She said "Three. They came by ship. One woman, two girls"

Larazzla looked to her little group who all shared various confused and unknowing expressions. The waif looked back at her and shrugged.

Rhaenys sighed. _This is going to be difficult_ , _but I have to try._

"Ironborn" She said, trying a different route and was satisfied when they showed a reaction to that word, mostly revulsion if she read that right. "They here?"

The waif turned back to her friends and, presumably, relayed what Rhaenys had asked. Zedar said something, Larazzla nodding to it "Yes. Gone now" she translated.

She let out a relieved sigh, relaying the information to Obara who managed a vicious smile. She spent the next few minutes trying to get their story across, having to dumb it down to the very basics and relying more on their facial expressions than on their words to see if the group of paupers understood what she was saying correctly. By the end of it Larazzla and her friends seemed to understand that she and Obara were foreigners and that they were trying to find other foreigners, an accurate enough story. She even managed to get the description of her mother to stick though she never imagined it would be so difficult to describe what the word "black" meant.

Seriously, black was black!

Larazzla did say something about helping them, though what exactly she wanted help with Rhaenys couldn't figure out. Obara also did not appear enthusiastic about that, the opposite in fact by the way her jaw tightened, which may not have been a good sign.

Still, Rhaenys reasoned, if they helped the paupers, the paupers would in turn help them. Mother always said to be nice to people and Ser Ash smiled every time she helped one of the Sand Sisters (mostly Tyene) in their practice sessions. Obara looked at her strangely at that, a mixture of pain and adoration which Rhaenys found an odd combination.

She needed to speak to Obara but for now the teen wasn't pushing herself to exhaustion and she wasn't fighting a losing fight, and for that Rhaenys was happy.

"Come on Obara, I doubt it would be anything too bad, not anything more than we've already done"

Obara, after looking at her eyes for a moment, sighed and turned away "Very well, Princess. Just be carefull. I dont feel too comfortable around these people" she said the last bit in a whisper.

Rhaenys furrowed her brows "Why? They saved us, saved you"

That tightening of the jaw again "They…" she looked back at her, expression softening "You like them?"

Rhaenys nodded "They've been the best people we've talked to since we got here"

Obara's expression was conflicted. "I...Just, they took out two guards Rhaenys, and they survive here. They arent soft people despite their age"

The little Princess nodded, so Obara was just worried for them? The thought put a smile to her face and she hugged the teen "It's going to be okay Obara. We help them and their going to help us look for Mamma and Nymeria and Tyene. We'll be fine"

She felt the older girl sigh and kiss her forehead "Just watch out my Princess"

Larazzla, through simple, broken Valyrian and vigorous amounts of gesturing, managed to eventually convey her desire.

Or she got frustrated enough to give up.

Either way, Rhaenys and Obara were now walking towards a dilapidated building along with Zedar and Randig. Initially, Larazzla was very expressive about Rhaenys staying with her and her sister but Obara was very quick to put an end to any notion of them being separated. Rhaenys had simply shrugged at the waif and joined Obara.

Zedar stopped in front of the buildings entrance, looking to where Larazzla and Hashene had climbed onto the roof, before putting his hand on the door and shoving himself in. The weak entrance gave way easily even to the thin teen and suddenly the two boys rushed in and started shouting. Rhaenys and Obara followed behind, the latter putting the former behind her.

Inside Rhaenys saw that the boys were shouting at another group, four other paupers who weren't too afraid to get their own voices up.

Rhaenys' eyes widened. What was going on?

Zedar was shouting something and then pointed towards them.

The four paupers who by now had drawn weapons, stones and sharpened glass, looked to them and paused.

Suddenly Larazzla and Hashene appeared behind the group, having dropped down from the roof form somewhere Rhaenys couldn't see.

The group was now surrounded and their shouting and died down. Rhaenys recognized the worry in their expressions.

It matched the one on her own face.

"Obara" she tugged on the teens arm "Closer, get closer"

The Sand Sister hesitated for a moment but relented, pushing her way past Randig.

"Who?" Rhaenys pointed to the group while looking at Larazzla.

"Bad" She replied.

Somehow, Rhaenys doubted that. "Why?"

Larazzla looked puzzled "Bad" she repeated, pointing at the group who were watching the exchange with confusion and apprehension. She pointed to something in the middle of the group "Food"

Indeed, there was a small satchel in the middle of the other group.

It took a moment for it to click in Rhaenys' mind and when it did, she started shaking her head. "No, no, no, NO!"

"What no?" Larazzla demanded, drawing a shiv to point at the rival group "Bad!" She insisted.

Rhaenys stepped between the waif and the group, Obara following close. "NO!" she said putting steel in her voice, pointing at the group behind her "No take food"

They stared at each other, Waif and Princess, brown eyes against purple.

Beside her, Obara coiled.

"Share. We share" Rhaenys said, cutting through the tense silence.

Larazzla's expression was confused anger. "Bad" She repeated, again pointing with her shiv towards the group. Her voice was raised in pitch.

Rhaenys shook her head "No. Good. We help" She turned to the other group of paupers "Rhaenys" she put her palm on her chest, then pointed to one of them "You?"

The boy who she pointed to looked no older than ten, perhaps younger. He was thin, they all were, with a gaunt face and dark haired with brown eyes. He was surprised at the address, looking to his companions who offered nothing more than confused looks and shrugs. "Name?" he asked, the Valyrian sounding foreign to his tongue.

Rhaenys nodded.

"Esnan"

"Esnan" Rhaenys sounded the name out "Hungry?"

He nodded, slowly. Rhaenys smiled at him and dug out a piece of bread from Obara's pack and offered it to him. Esnan looked at her hand, expression wary.

She insisted.

Slowly he accepted the gift and took a small bite out of it. After he swallowed he waited for a while, then when nothing happened he handed the rest of it to his companions.

Larazzla said something behind her but it was in Ghiscari so she ignored it, focusing instead on introducing everyone. She learned Esnans' companions were his sister Shiza and two friends, Radnar and Hindoz. When she went to introduce Larazzla's group he seemed to know them already, the two looking at each other with distrustful eyes.

Obara whispered to her "Rival gangs, in all likelihood. They probably steal or take from each other like this all the time"

Rhaenys tightened her lips and shook her head "Not this time. We're going to help them, and they're going to help us" she added the last bit, stopping Obara before the teen could argue. Though her expression remained doubtful the Sand Sister sighed and did not contest the idea.

"Then we need to make sure they have something that unites them, something that isn't against us"

Rhaenys nodded and, like with Larazzla, she mimed her way to a basic understanding with Esnan of what she wanted and what they wanted in turn, namely: food and warmth. Larazzla looked annoyed the entire time but said nothing to disrupt proceedings, nor raised any vocal protest when Rhaenys insisted that they all work together. Obara's advice was taken into consideration as she asked about the best places to get food from.

Most of the replies boiled down to: Rob someone else.

Rhaenys, however, had a different idea.

* * *

Esnan had once dreamed of eating chicken. It was a small dream he would freely admit, one that even seemed a little silly. Why not pork? Beef? Other meat from animals he had only heard of? Why not dream of being a master rich enough to buy all the meats in the world?

Because chicken was an achievable dream.

As a Free Child in the city of pyramids, he didnt think dreaming big was a good thing. Dreaming big made you stupid. You dont survive and stay free by being stupid.

He'd always thought that if he kept things simple, he and Shiza could eat all the chicken they wanted and nothing more.

Now though, now he wasnt too sure anymore about dreaming big being such a bad thing.

Not since the Silver Princess.

She was an odd one, her and the other one that kept to her side, Obara. Or the Angry One as she'd sometimes be called. Though never in Valyrian and never to her face.

Odd though she may have been, the Silver Princess was the best thing to have ever happened to Esnan. Him and the Free Children.

She had something that drew them all to her, and she was smart. Very smart.

She had them hunt the rats that plagued them during the night and though Larazzla scoffed and Shiza was disgusted, the snares she taught them to make from wires and string they had gathered netted them a decent handful. Not to mention getting rid of the vermin.

From the river they gathered eels, things that none of the Free Children even knew were there. "Follow the hunters to find the prey" the Silver Princess had said, pointing at the birds that occasionally dived into the river, which they also hunted by throwing sticks at the birds when they landed. Dried grass, sedge and dried driftwood gathered from the river were used to make a fire and when the smell drew other Free Children the Silver Princess offered them a place.

Thus their group swelled. Suddenly it wasn't just Larazzla's group or Esnan's or any of the other Little Leaders. It was all of them, every rival band of Free Children united in a matter of days under the Silver Princess. She told them to help the old people when they bought stuff from the market and in turn the old people gave them some coins or some food. She made them share the food they were getting so that none of them went to sleep feeling that sapping hunger they had all been so used to before. With the coins she had them buy cheap fabrics which she sewed into cloaks to keep them all warm.

When the guards were becoming a problem she gathered all the strongest Children and had the Angry One lead them. When any of the Children were being chased they would lead the guards to the Big Ones who 'ambushed' them, whatever that meant, and beat them up.

The guards didn't chase them much after a few of them stumbled out of the alleys, bloodied and bruised and missing most of the stuff they went in with.

In a few short days the Silver Princess managed to do something that Esnan didnt think was possible.

She gave them hope.

So, in return, the Free Children started to range the entire city, through streets unexplored and alleys unvisited, to find the Silvers Princes' Queen and the rest of her family. They risked capture by the guards, or worse, the Masters, all for the Silver Princess who gave them a chance no one else ever had.

As Esnan climbed to the top of a building to look down on the people below, eyes sharp and alert, belly full for the first time in years, wearing warm cloak with bird feathers sewn onto it, he thought about having a new dream.

Maybe, just maybe, he could have beef this time.

* * *

"Rhaenys?"

"Hm?"

"Where did you learn all of this?"

The little Princess blinked "Ser Ash"

Obara looked at her doubtfully "Really?"

She nodded "Mh-Hm"

"Ser Ash taught you how to catch eels, how to hunt birds, make fire, set snares and do everything you've been doing?"

She leaned back against a pillow and thought about it for a bit "Most of it. Mama taught me how to sew"

Obara was still looking at her, uncertain "Still, I dont remember her specifically teaching us all…" she waved her hands about, at the room of the house they made their main hideout, which was filled with the Free Children bustling about "...this"

Rhaenys shook her head "She did. Kind of. Never as lessons. It was when she told stories of where she came from, all the little things she did when she wasn't fighting. Some of it was before we got to Sunspear"

"Huh"

Rhaenys tucked her knees under her chin, smiling at the memory "She wasnt much of a good story-teller, preferred listing out facts and what happened and why"

Obara sighed, then chuckled "Good you listened then"

"Yes" her smile died down and she sighed "...I miss her, and mama and the rest"

Obara went over to sit next to her, patting her back "We'll find them soon. There's only so many places left that we havent covered"

She nodded, head buried in her knees and eyes closed.

 _Where are you?_

* * *

 **A/N: And that is that. A Rhaebara focused chapter showing how they managed to survive and perhaps even thrive. The Rhaenys leading a bunch of orphans was inspired by a chapter of a fic I read called Of the River and the Sea where the main character did much the same thing and I thought it would be an appropriate way to show Rhaenys off in a different light than I have previously. Hopefully I made it interesting and plausible, that Rhaenys could learn all those things from Ash.**

 **Anyway, thank you for reading and thank you all again for those who review, favorite and follow, I appreciate it greatly.**


	14. Chapter 14-Hope and War

**A/N: Thank you all to those who reviews, favourited and followed since the last chapter, it is much appreciated!**

* * *

" _Your doing well" Mercy patted her shoulder in the relatively safe confines of her tent._

" _Am I?" she asked, voice weary and face haggard, eyes beset with dark circles and fading bruises on her cheeks._

 _Mercy nodded, eyes conveying kindness through her visor. Kindness, and the desperate hope of seeing a wish fulfilled. "Many already turn to you as an inspiration. Even Holden notices and says nothing about what's going on. He wants you to succeed"_

" _...ah.." she hesitated, the words she wanted to say dying on her tongue. "Alright" she said instead. "Alright"_

 _Mercy nodded again, then embraced her._

 _She held on tight. So very tight, savouring the warmth and contact of another human being._

 _Dont go, she wanted to say as Mercy pulled away. Please, stay._

" _We'll be on the march tonight, im to be scouting ahead. Be careful, we're going through Helion Pass, Blood Legion territory"_

 _Her hand lingered on Mercy's fingers, ears barely hearing the words._

 _She nodded nonetheless._

 _Her hands clenched air as Mercy departed._

 _Her helmet clattered to the ground._

 _The tears flowed as she slumped onto her bedroll._

" _Mamma…"_

 _She struggled to fight the sleep that inevitably overcame her, trying in vain to delay the nightmares that haunted her dreams._

 _The morning was a sweet relief from the frightful night as she moved through the quickly packing camp, a flurry of co-ordinated and organized activity. All knew their task. All knew their place._

 _Her eyes scanned the mass of soldiers, for all here were soldiers, looking for the little marks and trinkets. Small feathers on their helmets, roughly carved stone necklaces, curious symbols drawn on their armour in non-so-visible places._

 _They were the Hopeful, the ones who who still held their humanity. The ones that she had brought to life. The ones that looked to her as their Hope._

 _Hope. That was what she was to them. She was their Hope._

 _She forced herself to stand straight, to ignore the ache in her body and the fatigue that weighed her down both in body and mind._

 _Hope could not falter. Hope could not fall._

 _Hope would stand tall and proud._

 _Hope is the Light of the Lost, to banish the darkness and usher in a new day._

 _For years she had spent toiling under that mantra, reaching out in secret to those in the Demon's camp that would listen. Mercy encouraged her and supported her as best she could, hiding her actions from prying eyes and silencing loose lips. For years she had forged those bonds that made the Hopeful._

 _Bonds she had seen broken and betrayed, people she had seen fall to the darkness. Each one stinging harder than the previous._

 _Yet she would not give up. She could not. So many relied on her to keep them together, to keep them away from the Demon's influence._

 _Despite how it was all too much, how she could only bear so much._

 _So she stood tall, drawing the eyes of the soldiers around her. She took a deep breath and walked with purpose, striding with confidence to hide her weakness._

 _Here I am, she thought, look at me and draw strength._

 _Her gaze was subtle but lingering, landing on those that looked to her and those that she knew wanted to. The latter was her focus._

 _She needed to pierce the veil of fear that shrouded them, to cast away the Demon's influence and make them see the light._

 _Before the darkness snuffed them out like it had with so many around her._

 _The dead-eyed ones she couldn't bear to look at. Early on she tried to reach them, spark that life within but she found out very quickly that that life had died. There was nothing there anymore._

 _At least, they weren't the Wolves._

 _The scavengers, the mongrels. These were the ones she despised. The ones that took to the Demon's preaching._

 _Petty and wrong it may have been, but every one of those animals that strayed near her blade in battle met with an unfortunate accident._

 _It sickened her, all this killing, but at least with them it was necessary._

 _Fun, even. Sometimes._

 _A bell was rung to a specific pattern. It was time to march._

 _Helion Pass was one of the many passes in the mountainous Ashfeld. Like every other pass, it was one prone to ambuscade._

 _So when a signal arrow had been launched notifying them of an attack, a response force was already on the way._

 _She cut down an enemy soldier with a swing of her sword and charged into the one behind, slamming her against the cliff wall and crushing her groin with her pommel. She finished her off and turned around to block a blow in one move, seamlessly pushing the sword away and cutting down the soldier in front of her. More converged on her position, more hopeless fools, little lambs to the slaughter._

 _Blood washed over her as she made butchers work of their bodies._

 _A kick to her face with an iron studded boot announced the entrance of a new enemy, a Blood Legion Centurion._

" _Io! Incredibilis!"_

 _She cleared the ringing in her ears just in time to avoid the Centurion's lunge, the enemies gladius skimming her helmet. She countered by sweeping her blade wide, hitting air as the Centurion dodged back but buying her space, space she used to great effect as she used her greater reach to safely score hits on the Centurion. She scored his shoulder and cut across his chest but the man dodged the third blow aimed for his leg and, with a warcry on his lips, lunged at her._

 _This close, it was his gladius that held the advantage and she was pushed to the defensive, half-swording her greatsword awkwardly to block his swift and precise strikes. But it was not enough as he struck from below, weapon piercing her plate and chain and the padding beneath. blade sinking to her belly. She headbutted the man away and screamed as the gladius was withdrawn. Wild swings of her sword warded the Centurion further away giving her time to reach for a vial in her belt and down the green liquid within._

 _The Centurion shouted a taunt and prepared to lunge once more but a spiked ball hammered into his back. She took advantage and attacked, landing a wrecking blow that split his helmet and shattered his cheekbone, finishing him off with a clean decapitating swing._

 _She looked at the conqueror who delivered the blow and her hand tightened on the handle of her sword._

 _A Wolf._

 _The conqueror laughed, swaggering over "Good strike wouldn't you say?"_

 _She stared at him._

 _The man shrugged and proceeded to loot the Centurion, bending down to rift through the corpse._

 _She stared at the back of his neck, fingers flexing._

 _Footsteps made her turn her attention towards another conqueror, this one she recognized. Stone, former Iron Legion._

 _A pendant of his namesake hung around his neck and she relaxed, slightly._

 _He nodded to her "You okay?"_

 _She nodded back._

 _He made a gesture and they moved away from the scavenging wolf._

" _I tried to back you up but you went and got yourself cut off"_

" _Hm"_

" _Heh, you went in so hard it's like you were trying to die"_

 _She paused for a moment, then shook her head and carried on._

" _Be more careful next time eh?" Stone whispered to her "Lotta people here need you around"_

* * *

Ash pulled her sword out from the gut of the sailor she skewered, the dark-skinned man- a Summer Islander she had been informed- falling to the deck in a slump.

She turned to the one next to him, gently placing her sword just so the tip rested _just_ above his crotch. "Does _this_ one know anything else?"

The Captain proceeded to speak to the Summer Islander in the latter's native tongue. Going by the former's expression he was playing the part of 'good guy'. However as the interrogation went on Ash could tell, going by the Islander's panicked look and the similar words he was saying as the previous victim, that this one would yield no more information than the last.

With a final look to the Islander the Captain turned to her and shook his head, confirming her thoughts.

Her sword pierced his heart before he could start begging.

"I suppose we have taken what information we can out of these?" She asked the Captain, pointing with her sword at the ship they had boarded. Around them the crew of the Sparrow were finishing up hauling the loot to their ship, looking quite pleased at the haul.

The Captain swayed his head a little, making a show of looking around, then nodded "Yes, yes I suppose" He looked down at the blood-stained deck, then watched as two of his crew dumped a body into the ocean. "Yes..."

Ash stared at him.

"Er, Ser?"

"Out with it" she said as she started wiping the viscera off her sword.

"Just..." The Captain tried to look anywhere but at her "...Really never seen a single man, er, person, kill entire ship crews before. Now, I know you good Knights are terrors on the field but, eh, well" He scratched his chin "Guess i'm just surprised I haven't heard of ya, is all"

She shrugged, stepping on the gangplank that connected the two ships. "I keep to myself"

The Captain looked skeptical as he followed her "Eh, maybe you think so but ive been sailin' for a long time. In every port you hear tale of every kind, of every reaver who made a haul decent enough to mention and every merchant who gambled and lost. Hells, I heard about the Battle of the Bells while I was in Volantis!" He shook his head "Anyway, point is, people like you usually have stories told about them"

Ash eventually made her way to the ship's prow, the Captain following her, both looking out into the ocean at the setting sun. "I dont have many stories to be told"

The Captain raised his brow, disbelief written on his face "I just watched you jump ten feet, in full plate, towards another ship and slaughter the crew like they were cattle. Hells those islanders had been preying on this route for near two years now!"

She snorted "It does not take much to be a scavenger"

The Captain shook his head and let out a bark "Ha! True enough, but still, where have you been in the world to learn how to fight like that?"

Ash leaned forward, putting her hands against the railing. "Not somewhere where you wish to go"

The Captain shook his head "No, likely not if they breed them like you. Still, at least tell me the name"

She was silent for a long moment, enough for the ship she had boarded to become a silhouette in the distance. The Captain remained by her side.

"Ashfeld" she said eventually.

"Huh, not a place im familiar with"

"Like I said, you wouldn't want to be"

He nodded "Fair 'nuff. How did you end up here then?"

There was another stretch of silence, longer this time.

"You know ive watched you brood on the prow of my ship for hours on end" He said with a slight emphasis on 'my' "In fact, i've stood right here, on this spot, doing it. Usually happens after I ask you a question"

The ship creaked, the waves crashed and the crew belowed.

Ash remained silent.

The Captain hummed a shanty.

"I was at the right place at the right time" She said eventually, when the Captain started to hum the fifth shanty.

The man stared at her.

She gave him a single glance over her shoulder before turning back to the ocean.

He breathed the sigh of a long suffering man. "Easier to get blood out of a rock…" he muttered as he stretched. "Alright then, you're an opportunist. Managed to find and stick to a noble, no problem, happens all the time. Even looks like you got close considering how...determined you are to get them back. They must mean a lot to you"

"They are my life"

The response was so unexpected it startled the Captain, making him jump slightly.

"I have found goodness in this world Captain and it is in them. That is why they are important, that is why we will travel halfway around the world to rescue them" She paused to take a breath and the Captain stared at her, daring not to move in case he startled her back into silence.

"Life is sweet, Captain"

The Captain nodded slowly, still keeping his mouth firmly shut. When it was clear she had no more to say he nodded to her again and backed away slowly.

He felt a little satisfied at having dug _something_ out of the unbelievably reticent (not to mention ungrateful) woman but there was something that bothered him, about the way she was speaking. Like she felt as if she had died, or at least thought she did.

To say she was a strange woman was understatement but at least she turned that sword away from him, his ship and his crew and even got them something for the trouble of escorting her on her mad venture.

Still, the Captain of the Sparrow mused, he really couldn't wait to get the madwoman off his ship.

* * *

The sound of marching feet was a chorus to her ears, a harmonious melody that heralded her judgement, and the liberation of misbegotten souls who toiled under the misguided hand of _peace_.

 _Peace_.

What an utter farce.

 _Peace_ allows weakness to thrive, _Peace_ allows the weak to rule over the strong, _Peace_ lulled all under it's care into complacency and stagnation. It was a failed system, an illusion constructed by the weak to fool the strong for they could not survive otherwise.

Worst of all was that _Peace_ gave false hope to humanity, a blatant and disgusting lie.

The very concept of _Peace_ could never work because men, ALL men, were inherently prone to War. It was part of them, a natural instinct to take by force what one desired. Barbarian or civilized, slave or master, this one instinct bound them all.

Life, all of existence in fact, was a competition to take and to hold what you wanted.

War, then, was natural. It was healthy even. Weeding out those too weak to hold on and allowing new blood to revitalise society, a circle of cleansing that spun around and around to ensure only the best of the strongest would lead.

At least, it should be, if not for the existence of the very concept of _Peace_.

Apollyon knew the follies of _Peace_. She had felt it's cold dagger in her back, she had seen it's weakness, it's promised lies torn asunder.

She wore it as her armour.

Now, do not get her wrong. _Peace_ was, admittedly, a perfect thing. A lovely ideal to strive for in a perfect world.

But men were not perfect, thus they could never have _Peace_ as long as they were what they were. Oh they would deny it, pointing to their great marvels and eternal statues, symbols of what could be done in _Peace_ and cooperation.

Symbols that she had seen swallowed and buried by nature itself, the only remains being broken ruins. But they were symbols still, of nature's might, of its persistence, of it's unrelenting power.

Of its inevitability.

Man's continuous denial of his own nature only brought misery, for if one man practiced _Peace_ he would grow weak. The man who accepted what he was would follow his natural instinct and the man of _Peace_ would be no more, helpless and defenceless, dying without a chance to ever realise what he could have been.

And there would _always_ be those who would accept their own nature.

 _That_ was the greatest sin of _Peace_. It killed men before they were even born, before they grew to know their full potential.

But she would make sure that the scourge of _Peace_ would no longer infest humanity. No longer blind it, inhibit it, weigh it down .

She would ensure that no little girls would have their hopes so brutally, so cruelly crushed by hoping, relying on _Peace_ and seeing melt away and receiving War.

She had achieved it in one world already and for what other reason would she be reborn in a new one than to renew her mission?

It was these thoughts that ran through her mind as she gazed upon the army that the 'beautiful and ancient' city of Yunkai assembled to face her, blocking the coastal road towards the city. An army made almost entirely of mercenaries..

The Sons of Lhazosh were a notable presence, an established mercenary company hailing from the eastern city that it took it's name from. Their banner of a fist clenching the sun on striped yellow and red was displayed prominently in the center of the battle line, the main anchor of the infantry made up of other lesser known companies. There was also another established company with a long history alongside, the Second Sons, who provided the anchor for the cavalry component which she was informed also included the infamous Dothraki. With them were Yunkai's own native forces that provided the auxiliary support and, she assumed, the leadership.

All in all she estimated it amounted to ten thousand, four thousand horse and six thousand foot.

In infantry she matched them and more. It was in the horse where her enemy would find their victory and they knew this. They chose a wide, flat plain as the field of battle with their right secured by the ocean, massing their cavalry on the left. Further left the flat field turned to foothills and then to mountains in the distance.

On her side was an army of eight thousand, a core of six thousand Unsullied and two thousand Freemen. Of the latter, a thousand of them were horsemen while the rest were skirmishers.

The shuffling of feet announced the arrival of her officers and she turned to face them.

Six Unsullied and two Freemen commanders stood before her, each bearing the chosen symbol of their respective Cohorts.

"Liberator, news from the fleet has come. They have forced the Yunkai'i to disengage but they suffered heavy losses" Sure Spear, formerly Blue Termite, reported.

Her ever present translator, Solla, relayed the report.

Apollyon smiled "Very good, tell them to retreat and restart supply operations" She looked over her shoulder at the enemy army again, arrayed in battle formation as it had been for the past two days. "I think now is the time we finally give them what they so desire" she said with a laugh.

Her commanders stiffened, standing at attention as she dismounted her horse and drew her blade to draw on the ground between them. She carved the enemy's battle line, marking out the infantry, skirmishers and cavalry. Then she drew another line opposing the previous, this one slanted with the right side close to the enemy's left and the left side farther away. Extending at a flat angle to the right she drew the symbol for the cavalry and behind them the symbol for the skirmishers.

"The battle will be decided on the right" she planted her sword for emphasis "Our cavalry will be supported by the skirmishers, as well as detachments from the Cohorts once the fighting starts. Their cavalry will in all likelihood attack first. If the infantry follow, perfect, though I doubt that, not until they see their cavalry win" She paused, looking at her commanders in their eyes, focusing especially on the two Freemen.

"You two will play a crucial role in this battle" she let a moment of silence hang, gaze boring into the two men. "I expect you will perform as I desire, as I have been training you to"

She was glad to see the men stiffen and nod. They had a lot to prove if they wished to remain as her Commanders.

She shifted her gaze to two others, the Unsullied commanders Steady Sword and Laughing Demon, commanding Second and Fourth Cohort respectively. "And you as well. Your Cohorts will be on the right and it will be your detachments that will come to our aid first. It will also be your cohorts that will lead the head of the hammer"

They nodded in unison then Horeo, the commander of the Skirmishers, spoke up "'Our' aid, Mistress?"

She nodded "I will be with the cavalry for this fight"

Her commanders looked between each other, eyes showing their nervousness at the idea even if their mouths remained shut.

She did not comment on it though, however amusing it may have been. "For the rest of you, you will move within charging distance of the infantry. If they attack, hold and do not push. If they start to retreat keep within charging distance, run them down if they flee. Keep detachments prepared to send to the right. Make it visible you are thinning your lines, hopefully that will force a commitment"

The commanders all nodded.

She looked over them all again, at each and every one. "This battle will decide the fate of this entire enterprise. If we win a city of two hundred thousand slaves await their liberation, if we lose, well..." she chuckled "I doubt these 'masters' will be so merciful when they tie you all up in chains once more. You each know that fate awaits you if you lose so" She extended her arms to her side "We better not lose"

The commanders nodded once more, expressions more determined, spines more stiffened.

She dismissed them shortly afterwards and turned back to observe the enemy once more, as well as her army as it began to move from their previous entrenched positions.

"You wish to say something?" She asked Solla.

The translator looked away, blushing "Ah, it is not my place mistress"

"I do not remember taking _your_ tongue"

Solla swallowed "Ah, I am simply curious…Um, why do you think the enemy has not attacked yet?"

She pointed towards the enemy army "Individually each part of that army has no wish to attack us. The Sons of Lhazosh will not run into our spears without support and the Dothraki remember the battle of Qohor with the way you speak about it. Without them the Second Sons will also not move. As well their leader is also timid, awaiting news from the sea battle. Likely their plan was to win at sea and cut off our retreat. Now though, now they have to fight."

The translator nodded, following where Apollyon was pointing "I see, thank you mistress….And your plan after you" she hesitated for a split second "...win the right?"

"Outflank and then destroy them. Or they win and destroy us" she said with a chuckle "Such is the way of War"

* * *

Mero could've jumped to the sky when the girlish little Yunkai'i _finally_ told them they would be fighting and he could've smacked Prendahl when the man did not actually jump when he told him to.

"What the fuck's your problem, we outnumber them and all we have to face is their cavalry. Four to one!" He bellowed as he mounted his horse.

"I know Unsullied" The Ghiscari said with all his bone-dry enthusiasm with life "Three thousand faced a Dothraki horde-"

"Yea, yeah, yeah gates of Qohor, tens of thousands of Dorthaki dead, everyone and their mother knows this fucking story. Doesn't make us lose before we even fight"

"If I recall correctly" Daario interjected as he caught up with them "Were not the Second Sons in that battle as well?"

Prendahl snorted "Yes. We ran"

Mero's hand twitched but he resisted the urge to smack his fellow captain yet again. Truly, he was a patient man. "That was a stupidly long time ago and no, it wasn't _our_ Second Sons. _My_ Second Sons dont run away when when faced with worse odds, we certainly aren't going to run away when we actually have the advantage"

Daario and Prendahl shared a look between them and rolled their eyes.

"Moving on" Daario said "I've been speaking with the Yunkai'i. They say that their leader is a foreigner, or at least doesn't speak the native tongue. Apparently he just appeared one day and cut down the city's guard and even some Unsullied, before starting the uprising"

Mero spat, smirking in satisfaction when it caught in Prendahl's boot "That's what I say to this 'Black Demon' garbage. We'll see how strong he really is. It's all probably a stupid story the refugees made up to save cover their own mistakes anyway. Fucking losing a city to one man..."

Daario and Prendahl shared another look and another eyeroll.

Soon the officers of the Second Sons joined their men at the front, looking out towards the assembled enemy army.

"Da duck is that formation?" Mero asked after a minute of observation.

Daario rubbed his beard "They...want to lessen the impact of our charge? They want to fight on the left first clearly"

Prendahl narrowed his eyes "They know the Lhazoshi and Yunkai'i wont attack until we win"

"Tsch, if they want to get it over with quicker we'll oblige them wont we boys!" The giant shouted to his men who raised their lances, and their voices, in reply.

"There" Daario pointed to a certain banner in the distance "I think that's our foreigner"

Indeed, the banner was distinct from every other one in the enemy's ranks. Orange on black with the symbol of half a skull and half a great helm with a sword driven between the two. Currently, the banner was moving to take position with the cavalry, who themselves bore the banner of a red horse trampling on chains on a white background.

"Cunt must be Westerosi then. Looks like heraldry"

The other two captains nodded "How did he end up all the way over here then?"

Mero burst out in laughter as realization came to him "Ha! Thats it! The Astapori fucked up and enslaved the wrong guy. Now it came to bite them in their ass"

"If he is a knight then this is a man well versed in warfare" Prendahl pointed out "It would pay to be wary"

Mero rolled his eyes "Oh fuck off, it would pay to get this battle over with so we can sack a city"

The Ghiscari ignored him, still scanning the enemy with a focused gaze. "Must be something…" he muttered.

Loud, sharp yelling drew Mero's attention to the Dothraki who, evidently, were waking up to the fact there was going to be a battle today.

The animals really could sleep in their saddles.

"You sure they're actually gonna join us?" He asked Daario.

The Tyroshi nodded "As long as we attack, and the infantry follow up"

Mero shook his head and let out a loud groan "Hear that boys! The Second Sons are the only ones who want to fight!"

Another round of cheering and raising of arms ensued, the soldiers shouting the name of their company and getting themselves prepared to face a day of blood.

Mero leaned into Daario as the Second Sons continued their cheering, the giant speaking in a whisper "Things start to go south we make a break for the hills. Four horns is the signal"

The Tyroshi smirked "Of course"

The officers separated, each going to their assigned place in the line. Mero tapped the head of his lance against the ground and made sure his greatsword was secured on his back. He looked around him to see his men doing the same thing, checking on their weapons and equipment. Further down the line he tried to make out the banners of the Lhazoshi and the various companies that made up the infantry, satisfied that they were still there, the banner of Yunkai flying high.

Soon enough the order came, messengers traveling up and down the line from the Yunkai'i commander bearing one word all of them understood: Attack.

The Titan's Bastard hefted his twelve foot lance, couching it under his arm and settling himself on his saddle, his men doing the same.

"Come on you fuckers, show these prissy little Yunkai'i how the Second Sons do it!" He _shouted_.

The cheer rose from the men "Second Sons! Second Sons! Secons Sons!"

Not to be outmatched the Dothraki Screamers joined with their ear-piercing chorus of shrieks and animal noises, araks and lances swinging in the air.

The noise was so loud it nearly drowned out the horn blow that called for the charge, but Mero heard it. He bellowed an order, the signalman next to him blowing his horn in response.

The Second Sons lined up their lances, then charged, bellowing all the way.

The sound of four thousand hooves trampling the ground was akin to a rolling thunder and the piercing shrieks of the Dothraki was the lightning.

Great plumes of dust kicked up behind the horsemen as they closed the distance.

Their opponents, silent as the grave, tightened their ranks until their knees were touching, couched their lances and charged.

As the two masses of horses and men closed, Mero could see a black-clad figure mounted on an equally black horse at the head of the enemy's formation.

 _Ive got you, you fucker_ The giant thought.

The lines closed.

The horses clashed.

Men and beast _screamed_.

Mero's lance caught a rider before his opponent could land a hit, the sheer force and momentum behind the blow unhorsing the man and throwing him into the air. His lance bent but did not snap so he continued on, plowing into the tight enemy ranks through brute force alone.

Lances thrust to pierce his flesh but he either batted them aside or dodged, or otherwise let his armour take the brunt, the split mail and leather absorbing the thrusts. This close the lances became unwieldy and useless so Mero thrust and skewered a man, leaving his lance inside him and drawing his greatsword to hack away at his opponents. Men and horse around him fell with each great swing of his blade, the tightly packed enemy formation affording him great opportunity for slaughter.

One man tried to unhorse him but Mero batted the lance away though he had to back away anyway because three more lances thrust into his face. He hacked the heads off the weapons but the riders simply turned them to reveal a secondary head, thrusting for him and his horse until one was lucky and pierce his horse's eye. The beast reared in pain allowing for the enemy to thrust into it's chest and kill it. Before it died however Mero jumped off the horse and replied the favour, hacking a horse and rider down onto the ground and decapitating another horse with a follow-up swing.

The Titan's Bastard fought like a monster, but as he slew another cavalryman he quickly started to realise he was fighting alone.

 _Where the fuck are the rest of them?_ He thought as he fought off a pair of riders, hacking away at him with swords. He used his greater range to parry their strikes and counterattack, striking down one's horse and thrusting another, piercing through the man's splint mail and lifting him off his horse to throw him aside into another group of riders.

With a moment's breath Mero looked around and quickly saw the problem.

The enemies tight formation was surrounded sure, but they drove deep into the ranks of his own men and he in turn plowed deep into theirs.

He could see the edge of the formation though, where the enemy was fighting the Dothraki and his men, the latter chewing through with overwhelming numbers.

As he tried to make his way towards them however, his honed battle instincts forced him to dodge to the side.

A greatsword swung where his torso had been.

Mero swore at the black-clad knight and charged before the man could turn his horse. His greatsword however was met by another as the man deftly swapped swords hands, parrying him as he turned his horse. The titan's bastard continued his assault however but the horse reared and kicked at him, forcing the giant of a man back before a shodden hoof caught his face.

Mero caught the knight's swing, catching the blade in his guard and throwing it aside. Before the knight could recover Mero rushed in and quickly thrust a dagger into the horse's neck, taking the beast down though it's rider jumped off before he was pinned by the falling animal.

Now without a horse it was Mero who towered a head above the man.

"Let's get this shit over with!" he growled and attacked with a powerful overhead swing but the knight met his blade, steel clashing against steel as he put his sword up to block and then threw Mero's blade to the side. Mero backed away but the Knights blade caught him still, scoring a line across his belly but mostly hitting armour.

The Westerosi now went on the offensive with strong and steady strikes and it was clear he knew how to use a greatsword.

Mero was no easy opponent though, and he let the Knight know that as he blocked a swing and pushed the Knight's sword away, following up with a kick to the man's gut which allowed him to land a powerful blow, swinging his sword down onto the man's left shoulder. With his great strength his blade sunk into the pauldron, through chainmail and padding and into the man's shoulder.

Before he could pull back however, the Knight grabbed onto his blade and held it in place.

Mero paused, confused.

The man was laughing.

"Ha ha ha ha ha…" He breathed. A moment hung in the air "...Miserum!"

Mero's eyes widened and he used more force to wrench his blade out but the Knight used _one hand_ to swing his greatsword, hitting Mero's outstretched hands.

The titan's bastard cried out in pain, only his vambraces preventing his hands from being severed but as it was his right wrist was definitely broken. He still managed to get his blade out though but with only his off-hand functioning, he knew he had to finish this quickly.

The Knight did not give him a chance, launching a renewed assault with a flurry of blows, each one he struggled to block and parry, straining his left arm until he _had_ to use his broken right, using adrenalin to fight through the burning pain that every blow brought.

"Come on you fuckers!" He shouted to his men in Tyroshi. Surely they had to have hacked through by now.

He couldnt afford even the barest of moments to look away from his opponent to see though as the Knight's assault carried on, blow after blow raining down. He was now fully on the offensive with Mero unable to get a hit in.

Desperation started to creep into Mero's voice "Come on! Come on! Seconds Sons on me!"

The Knight swung down.

Mero moved to parry.

It was a feint.

The Knight turned, dashing close through his open side and smashing into him with a spiked pauldron.

Mero bellowed in pain as the spikes pierced into his ribs and a swing to his back brought the titan's bastard down to his knees.

His men. Where were his men!

"Sons!" He cried desperately "He-"

A taloned hand closed over his mouth, claws sinking into his cheeks.

"Look" the Knight said in Westerosi, forcing his head to the side.

His eyes widened.

His men and the Dothraki were being pushed back.

Some lay dead, men and horses alike piled atop one another coated in arrows. He saw a Second Son being unhorsed by an Unsullied, the man thrown to the ground and stabbed through with a spear.

All along the line the cavalry were being pushed back by the eunuch soldiers, their spears and tight formations near impenetrable to the static horsemen.

Then he heard it.

Four horns.

 _No._

It blew again, the second Sons started to turn and run.

 _No you fuckers._

The Dothraki saw this, confusing spreading amongst their ranks.

 _No! No! Im still here! Get me!_

The horse lords saw the battle was turning, the Unsullied pushing into them.

 _NOOOOOO!_

They broke and ran.

His struggling body was held in place the Knight, more talons digging into his neck.

"Your men have run. You have lost" the Knight seemed amused by this going by the tone of his voice.

Wait.

"Yer a fucking woman!" He shouted once the Knight let got of his mouth.

"An astute observation" she said dryly.

Talons sunk into his neck "Now, tell me, what do I do with you?"

Mero's voice caught in his throat, his eyes roving around for anything that could help him. It landed on his sword that he dropped, lying within arms reach.

"Hey hey, let me live and I'll tell you how you could get into Yunkai easy"

The woman laughed "What makes you think I need _your_ help?"

"Cus I know a way that wont cost you anything-hrk!" The talons tightened on his throat.

"Now now, you fought well. Dont shame that by begging"

She let go entirely and Mero fell onto his hands and knees, breathing deeply.

His fingertips touched his sword.

The she-Knight backed off, speaking to an Unsullied in broken Westerosi.

He slowly wrapped a hand around his handle.

Five spears suddenly pinned him in place and he froze.

"Let this one go" He heard the Knight's voice call out.

A moment later then the Unsullied withdrew their spears and he stood, pain flaring on his back and wrist. He turned to look at the black Knight as she mounted a horse someone brought her and waved her sword, ordering her men.

"Go on now" She said to him as she glanced his way, speaking as if he was a stray dog.

Mero took his chance and fled.

* * *

Apollyon watched the giant of a man limp away for a moment before turning her focus back on the rest of the battle.

A quick survey was all that was needed to confirm that her cavalry was decimated, what was once in the thousand was now in the low hundreds.

But the enemy infantry had committed and now they were being held all across the line, the sellswords unable or unwilling to push into the thinned ranks of Unsullied who were at most three deep.

It would only take a moment before those on the right realized what had happened.

She turned to her signaler and nodded, pointing her sword forward.

The trumpet was blown, a signal for all local forces to attack.

The head of the hammer swung with force, the Unsullied detachments swinging around and striking the enemy's left flank from the rear. The remaining skirmishers and cavalry, those who could still fight, circled further and positioned themselves behind the enemy, cutting off their line of retreat.

The enemy left buckled, then broke.

The Unsullied Cohorts on the right pushed, cutting down their fleeing enemy.

The sellswords lost cohesion quickly after, throwing down their weapons and fleeing all along the line.

But the trap had been closed, they were surrounded.

Apollyon smiled.

Now was the time for men to rise as wolves.

Or die as sheep.

* * *

 **A/N: Well that is that. An action packed chapter where we catch up with Ash and Apollyon, hopefully giving insights on each of their minds and some rare character development.**

 **Maybe. I realise I really should make these dream/flashback sequences make more sense and give off more information of how Ash came to be since that is their main purpose. Hopefully ive done that here, cus there will be more of them in the future.**

 **Ive thought about it a little bit and I really should have covered the 3 month time skip because that would have been a really good chance to flesh out Ash. I'll hopefully cover that period in flashbacks.**

 **Moving on, I based Apollyon's battle mostly on the Battle of Pharsalus in Caesar's Civil War. At Pharsalus Ceasar had a smaller but more veteran force against Pompey's numerically superior but inexperienced army, not unlike the army compositions above. Pompey, like the Yunkai'i, had a massive cavalry advantage which they hoped would swing the battle for them.**

 **However, it did not because Cesare used the same tactic I had Apollyon use, thinning out his lines to form a detachment to send to the cavalry fight on his right. Caesar's cavalry fell back but Pompey's horse were unable to push through because they were attacked by the detached Legionaries. From there they outflanked and destroyed the Pompeians.**

 **Here I had Apollyon encircle and pin the Yunkai'i army against the sea, which was why her line was slanted, so she could go about being Apollyon and raising new Wolves or slaughtering sheep.**

 **Hopefully her life theory also made sense.**

 **Anyway, as always, thank you all for your reviews, favorites and follows!**


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